


Fate/Xillia

by ArchdemonSlayer



Category: Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms, Tales of Xillia
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-10
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-08-21 17:17:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 25
Words: 71,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8253959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArchdemonSlayer/pseuds/ArchdemonSlayer
Summary: In Rieze Maxia and Elympios, the 5th Holy Grail War is about to begin. But the Servants are in different dimensions.





	1. The Summoning

**This takes place at the end of Xillia 2, but at that part after the final battle but you still can finish everything. The Holy Grail War is also in this. Like in battle, Ludger is able to use his chromatus without adding to Elle's transformation.**

**The main character has her entire left arm covered in bandages to hide the demon arm, like Velvet. It can only eat objects, not living things, but she can coat it in whatever element with spirit artes. She wears a white T-shirt, black shorts, and black boots. She has black hair and eyes and lives in Trigleph, though she's a Rieze Maxian. She lives in the same apartment as Ludger, but on the 2nd floor. She's 22.**

* * *

Holly was excited. The package she had been waiting for arrived. A few months ago, she had taken interest in the upcoming 5th Holy Grail War. It was normally in Rieze Maxia, but this was the first time since the schism was dispelled. A few weeks ago, her Command Seals appeared on the back of her right hand. It looked like the outline of a red sun broken up into three sections. One piece was on top and two on the bottom. All had lines sticking out from the edges and curved to the right, all pointing to the next. Holly had sent someone to Rieze Maxia to get a relic from a place that used to be Ireland.

She went out the door, sprinting to the elevator with the package. As she turned a corner, she bumped into someone. It was a large, tan man with black hair and magenta eyes. He wore a suit that was all black. Behind him was a floating woman. She had a pair of white wings, three branch-like things on each. She had green eyes, long, light blue hair with green tips, and a blue dress. She was chuckling at what just happened.

Hannah and the man got up, brushing the dust off their respective clothes. "Sorry about that," Holly said.

"It's fine," the man replied.

Holly stared at him, squinting her red eyes. "Wait...Aren't you Gaius, king of Rieze Maxia?"

The man looked embarrassed, blushing and looking away. "Y-You must be mistaken!"

The floating woman giggled. "No use trying to hide from someone who's discovered you, Gaius."

Gaius glared at the woman. "Not so loud, Muzet! Do you want to blow my cover?!"

Holly's jaw dropped. "I can't believe I ran into Rieze Maxia's king! What in the world are you doing here?!"

Muzet smirked. "Goofing off."

Gaius fixed her with another glare. "I'm disguised as a commoner, visiting Elympios to get a feel for how the people here live. I'm seeing Ludger about a new job."

"Yeah, well I have to get going, too," Holly told him.

Gaius glanced at her. "Where to?"

"Nowhere."

Muzet narrowed her eyes at Holly's left arm. "I can sense malevolence coming from that arm. What are you hiding?"

Holly ran around Gaius and Muzet, going into the elevator. "I really have to go now."

Muzet continued to stare at the elevator with narrowed eyes even as the doors closed. "She's up to something. We should follow her."

"What about Ludger?" Gaius asked the spirit.

"Call him on his GHS and let him know what's going on."

"Fine." Gaius got out his red cell phone, flipped it open, and stared at it. "What do I press again?"

Muzet burst out laughing, rolling back in mid-air and holding her sides, tears coming to her squeezed-shut eyes. "I forgot how bad you are with technology! You've been told how to send calls a million times, and you still don't know how to do it!"

Gaius glared at Milla's sister. "We didn't have these a year ago! Of course this is all new to me!"

Muzet righted herself, letting out her last giggles, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Okay, whatever excuse you want to make!" Gaius glowered at her while she flew over, going behind Gaius and looking at his phone. "Press this button to go to your contacts list..."

* * *

In the park, there weren't any people. Holly drew an intricate circle in the grass with red paint. Opening the package and looking in the box, Holly found a single silver earring. She placed it on a nearby rock and began reciting the incantation for summoning a Servant.

As she spoke each word, she could feel bits of her mana being used. Her hair whipped around her as she spoke the last few lines.

"...From the binding circle, thou guardian of the scales!"

Mist erupted from the circle, making Holly cover her face with both arms. In the center was a man with blue hair in a ponytail holding a red spear. He wore a blue bodysuit with silver lines. On each ear was a silver earring. He opened his red, cat-like eyes.

"Are you my Master?"

"Yes, I'm Holly Fayte (Before anyone wonders, yes this was on purpose). Please use my first name. I feel weird being called Master. I assume you're lancer-class?"

"I'm Cu Chulainn," the Servant said. "Were ya wantin' a Lancer?"

"Yeah. Having power doesn't mean a lot if you don't have the speed for it. Better to have a quick, weak Servant than a slow, powerful one. Even if one is weaker, they can land more hits if they can dodge and counterattack quickly. Since Lancer is one of the fastest Servants, I wanted one. Plus, you're close-range, too. Do you know if any other Servants have been summoned?"

Lancer shook his head. "'Fraid I don't know. Ya should ask the Overseer fer that."

The Overseer was stationed in Xian Du. It was a man named Kirei Kotomine. Not many people, including Holly, liked him.

Lancer glanced at Holly's left arm. "What'cha hidin' there? I'm gettin' a bad feelin' 'bout yer arm."

Holly looked down at her arm. "Just something I was born with. No need for concern."

The Servant narrowed his eyes. "I don't like to pry, but I have the feelin' it's somethin' I should know about."

The woman sighed. "...It's a demon arm. Happy?"

Lancer scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I have the feelin' askin' fer more details will only upset ya."

"In that case, please refrain from asking more."

"I got it." Lancer stiffened. A bestial aura seemed to envelope him. "Someone's here!"

* * *

After Gaius had finally figured out his phone with Muzet's help, the two went outside and hid behind one of the corners of the building behind Holly, keeping the woman in sight.

Muzet peered over Gaius' shoulder, seeing Holly make a complex circle with red paint. "Is she summoning something?"

Gaius glanced at her. "Summoning?"

"I can't remember the exact details, but it's for summoning spirits unlike the ones we're familiar with."

"So she's calling to one of those spirits?"

"Possibly. And I wonder if that mark on her right hand has anything to do with it."

"Can you tell if it's a spirit arte at least?"

"Mana's being used, but she isn't channeling spirits. This doesn't seem to be a common form of summoning." Muzet listened to Holly's incantation. "Grail...Could she mean the Holy Grail?!"

Gaius glared at the spirit. "Keep it down! And what do you mean?"

Muzet seemed to calm down. "Every 60 years in Rieze Maxia, seven mages fight to the death for the wish-granting Holy Grail. She could be summoning a Servant to fight alongside her. This explains those marks, at least."

"Servant?"

"A Heroic Spirit from any time period."

As mist came from the circle and a man appeared, Gaius looked over at Muzet. "Is that a Servant?"

"I can't tell at first glance!" Muzet snapped. "There are spirits even I'm not familiar with!"

"Don't shout!" Gaius hissed. "She'll find out we're here!"

During the arguing, the two didn't notice the strange spirit charging at them and swinging his spear. Gaius sidestepped and Muzet flew up. She fired a large ball of gravity at the attacker. The man jumped back at the last second, the orb flattening the grass.

' _How could he have dodged that?!'_ Muzet flew down, shooting out a sharpened bunch of hair. The man used the red spear to block, sending the hair back. Gaius took out his katana and swung it, red energy skimming the ground at the attacker. The man moved to the side and Muzet shot up suddenly to avoid the attack. "You almost hit me!" _'Jerk! I'll choke him in his sleep!'_

Holly took a step forward. "Cut it out for now."

The spearman stopped himself. He was right in the middle of rapidly stabbing his spear at the king. "Fine, but yer reason had better be good!"

As the man jumped back to land behind Holly, the woman sighed. "I thought it was clear that what I would be doing wasn't for spectators. Can you two not take a hint?"

Muzet crossed her arms and legs, seeming to sit in the air. "It's your fault for acting suspicious."

Holly facepalmed. "This was one case where it was better not to pry."

Gaius put his katana away. "Why didn't you want this seen?"

"Because it's something outsiders shouldn't know about?"

"About the Holy Grail War?" Muzet asked. Holly and Lancer started.

"How do you know about it?!" Holly demanded.

"I'm a spirit, so I've at least heard of it. I take it that's your Servant? By his weapon, I assume he's a Lancer."

Lancer made his weapon disappear. Holly looked at Muzet. "You're well-knowledged. Indeed this is my Servant. And I'm sure you've already guessed I'm a Master. I'm sure you know what my next question will be."

"Neither of us are Masters. If you aren't satisfied, you can check us for Command Seals."

Holly glanced at her Servant. "Well, Lancer?"

"I don't sense Servants with either of them. Even if she's lyin', they don't pose a threat since I'm with ya."

Holly glanced around. People were starting to mill about. "Maybe we should take this inside. We don't want anyone overhearing our conversation."

"In that case, you should get acquainted with our friends," Muzet said. "It'll be hard to keep this a secret from them."

* * *

Muzet and Gaius led Holly and Lancer to the third floor. The two took them into the last apartment room in the hall.

"Ludger! We brought some guests!" Muzet called out. A door to a bedroom opened and a man stepped out. He had silver hair with black on the end of his bangs and blue-green eyes with a yellow-green ring around the pupils. A fat white cat with some black areas trotted out. It had wide, blue eyes and a bell around the collar. It went over to Holly and Lancer and rolled over, wanting its belly scratched. Holly gave in and did just that.

"I wondered what had happened when I got a call saying that you two needed to do something," the man said. "I was even more surprised since it was Gaius calling me." Gaius scowled. Even though he was bad with technology, there was no need for everyone to tease him about it! "Who are these two?"

"I'm Holly Fayte."

"And your Servant?" Muzet prompted, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow from her skeptical face.

Holly sighed. Muzet wasn't going to let her off easy. "He's Lancer."

"They're participating in a mages' tournament called the Holy Grail War," Muzet added.

The door slid open and six more people came into the room, three boys and three girls. One of the women had long, blonde hair with one piece sticking out. She wore blue and white clothing and had magenta eyes. Next to her was a boy with black hair, gold eyes, and wearing a white lab coat. Following close behind was a little girl in a blue school uniform. She had green-blonde hair in two pigtails, green eyes, and holding a pink-and-black doll. Near her was an old man. His hair was all white and he wore blue. Over his gray eyes were a pair of glasses. The last pair had a girl wearing yellow and a black hat o her head. She had brown hair and green eyes. Lastly was a tall man in a black jacket. He had brown eyes and hair. On his chin was a small beard.

"Jeez, how many are there?!" Holly groaned.

"Meet Milla, Jude, Elize, Rowen, Leia, Teepo, and Alvin," Gaius said. "Everyone, meet Holly and Lancer."

"And I'm Ludger," the man in the room said. "I was the one who called and told them all something was going on in Gaius and Muzet's case."

"So what's going on?" Jude asked.

Holly facepalmed. She was getting tired of explaining the war over and over. She decided to cut down on it to save time. "Lancer and I are in the Holy Grail War."

Jude scratched the side of his head. "What's the Holy Grail?"

"An object the grants the last duo's wish," Holly answered.

Milla glanced at Lancer and crossed her arms. "Are you a spirit?"

"Technically, yes," Lancer replied.

Milla cocked her head. "Technically?"

"He's a non-corporeal being who feeds off my mana to keep his physical form," Holly explained. "He's known as a 'Servant', a Heroic Spirit I summoned as my partner in the Holy Grail War."

"I take it you're up against others?" Alvin guessed.

"Six others," Lancer replied. "Saber, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, and Berserker. However, we don't know how many other Servants have been summoned."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "As spirits, Muzet and I have recently picked up remains of a presence similar to yours in Fractured Dimensions."

"Fractured Dimensions?" Holly questioned.

"Realities different from our own," Ludger answered.

"I wonder what the other Servants could be doin' in those?" Lancer asked out loud.

Leia pumped her fists in the air. "We should find out! I'm ready for some action!"

Holly shook her head. "Sorry, but this is a proxy war between Masters and their Servants. It would be safer if you guys don't get involved."

Alvin crossed his arms. "Like we're a bunch of pussies when it comes to danger. Teepo, maybe." The doll let out a "Hey!". "Besides, without at least Ludger, you won't know the locations of any rifts."

Lancer narrowed his eyes. "What's special 'bout him?"

"He's a DODA agent," Jude answered. "Plus, without him, you guys can't get back to the Prime Dimension."

Holly's expression mirrored Lancer's. "And why is that?"

Alvin smirked. "You need to destroy the divergence catalyst, and only someone with a chromatus, like Ludger, can destroy it."

Holly pinched the bridge of her nose. "For Maxwell's sake...Fine, you guys can join us." She took out her GHS. It was red with blue edges. "What's your number, Ludger?"

As Ludger told her and she added it to her contacts list, Lancer leaned over to her ear. "Why don't we just wait for those Servants to kill each other off?"

"If we don't fight, the Grail won't think we're worthy of possessing it," the woman answered, putting her phone away. She looked at the others. "Are you guys able to fight? I'm a spellcaster, though Lancer and I will back each other up."

Milla glanced at Holly's left arm. "And what is that?"

Holly moved her right hand over her left, blushing. "You'll find out. How capable are the rest of you?"

"Ludger's able to fight, and the rest of us were involved in dispelling the schism," Rowen replied.

Teepo flew up. "Muzet and Gaius are strong! We fought them a year ago, so we know! But I'm the strongest!"

Alvin grabbed Teepo and started pulling him in and out like an accordion. "Stop talking so highly about yourself like that, you little spud!"

Teepo's voice went high as he was stretched out, and back to normal as he was pushed together. "CUt thAt Out, ALVin!"

Elize grabbed for Teepo, but Alvin was holding the doll out of her reach. "Don't get Teepo all stretched out!"

Alvin laughed and let go of Teepo's head. It snapped back and his entire body jiggled from it. "Sorry, Elize. But the spud needs to learn to shut up every once in a while!" He gave the pink-and-black doll back to the girl. Teepo's eyes looked like swirls.

"I think I'm gonna barf..." he groaned. Everyone else, except those three and Gaius, had one hand over their mouths, giggling.

Holly controlled her chuckles. "Lancer and I will be in the second apartment, to the left of the 2nd floor hallway if you need us."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "Since he's a male spirit, and you two are living together, I assume direct-tethering will be involved?"

Holly was just about to go out the door when she froze. Lancer dematerialized himself. Holly didn't know the meaning of 'direct-tethering', but she had a feeling of what it involves. "Of course not!"

Muzet giggled. "How boring. Even though you two just met, it seems there's room for you two to take it to the next level!"

Holly snarled, turning her head slowly to glare at the floating spirit. "I'm not that desperate for a boyfriend, damn you!" She stomped out into the hall. Too bad the doors slid shut on their own. If they were ones you had to shut yourself, she'd slam it. As she cooled her head and went into the elevator, she wanted to slap herself. Now, she got others involved in the war. If only she could do this herself!


	2. First Fractured Dimension

The next morning, Holly's GHS went off while the woman was in bed. Lancer was just outside the building, keeping watch during the night. Holly groaned and picked up her phone, opening it and putting it near her ear.

"What is it?" Holly's speech sounded slurred from sleepiness.

Ludger was on the other end. "We need to talk at my place. Everyone's already here." Holly wondered how many we're upset at being woken up so early.

"Fine, just a minute," Holly mumbled. She hit the button to end the call. "Lancer!"

The demigod appeared, blue mana cascading off him as he did. "What's up?"

Holly rubbed her eyes before getting out of bed with a loud yawn. "Ludger wants us. We're meeting at his apartment."

The entire way to Ludger's place, Holly was walking like a zombie. All she could think about was wanting to go back into bed. The door to Ludger's apartment room slid open and the Master and Servant walked in, though Holly looked like the walking dead. Rollo, the cat, rubbed himself up against Holly's legs, but she hardly noticed.

Holly yawned. "What's so damn important that you had to wake me up?!"

Muzet giggled. "Looks like someone's not a morning person."

The mage glared at the woman. "Who the hell _likes_ getting up early?!"

Lancer ignored the argument between his Master and the spirit. He looked at Ludger. "So what is it?"

"I thought you two should get some practice dealing with Fractured Dimensions. It was perfect timing, since Vera just called and told me a rift to a new one was found."

"Who's Vera? Your girlfriend?" Holly took a break from bickering with Muzet to smirk at Ludger.

Ludger went red and Jude facepalmed. "No. She's just a coworker who gives him info on new Fractured Dimensions."

Leia glanced at Ludger. "Where's the rift?"

Ludger seemed to calm down. "At the start of the Nia Khera Hallowmont."

Holly felt like killing herself. "Isn't Nia Khera in Rieze Maxia? I really don't wanna do all that traveling."

Alvin chuckled. "Well, you'd better get used to it. We're gonna be doing a lot of it."

"Yay..." Holly grumbled unenthusiastically.

* * *

During the entire trip, Holly did nothing but complain that her feet were killing her. It seemed that her whining about being tired was becoming much more favorable to this. Upon entering Nia Khera, a man ran up to Milla, bowing.

"You've returned, Lady Milla!"

"We're just passing through, Ivar," Milla said to him. "We're heading for the Hallowmont."

Ivar stood up, grinning. "I should be there to protect you, Lady Milla!"

Milla shook her head. "It involves a rift to a Fractured Dimension."

"I heard from to local animals! That's why I should be your guard!"

Holly crossed her arms. "This guy's annoying. Who is he?"

Milla gave a small grin. "This is Ivar, my handmaid."

Ivar pointed a finger at Holly. "And who are you?!"

"I'm Holly, a Master. This is my Servant, Lancer."

Ivar scoffed. "Do you really think you can protect Lady Milla?!"

Alvin grit his teeth and narrowed his eyes. "Don't forget us!"

Holly looked steadily at Ivar. "I assure you we are quite capable."

Ivar grinned. "I'll be the judge of that!" He brought his leg back and took out two daggers.

"Ivar..." Milla said in a warning tone. The other villagers had stopped and were staring at the scene.

"Don't worry, Lady Milla," Ivar said. "I just want to prove this woman wrong!" Milla sighed, exasperated. She and the others in the party, except Holly and Lancer, moved the villagers safely away. Lancer grinned like a wild animal and Gae Bolg appeared in his right hand. He crouched down, pointing the tip at Ivar.

Holly sighed. "Just don't go overboard, Lancer."

Ivar glanced at Holly, who was taking several steps back. "You're not fighting? Coward!"

Holly grinned darkly. "I just want to stay out of the way of my Servant while he's fighting. I don't want to die, after all."

Ivar's face fell. "What do you- -?" He didn't get to finish. The earth beneath Lancer's feet shattered as he rushed at the handmaid at blinding speeds. Ivar hastily held both swords up in front of his face, but instead a kick made impact with his gut as the warrior appeared in front of the man. Ivar's body shot through a wall of the nearest house.

As a cloud of dust drifted though the hole, Lancer scratched his head. "I may have overdid it. I keep forgettin' how fragile humans are."

Ivar shot out of the dust cloud, both swords in an X shape in front of him as he flew at Lancer. The spearman brought his weapon sideways and in front of him, making the swords grind against the red shaft. Holly grinned and crossed her arms. There was no way her Servant would lose to this clown! Lancer pushed his spear up, knocking away the daggers. Just as the handmaid recovered, the tip of Gae Bold was at his neck.

"What's yer assessment now?" Lancer asked while grinning. He made his spear dematerialize as Ivar got back up.

"Fine. You're strong enough to protect Lady Milla," Ivar growled, reluctant.

"Now for the new problem," Milla said. She was looking at the massive hole in the house Ivar had gone through.

Ivar sighed. "I'll take care of that."

* * *

As the group left Nia Khera, they came to some long stairs at the end of the Spiritway.

Holly's jaw dropped. "We have to go up _those_?!"

"Stop whining," Alvin said. "That won't get us up these any faster."

While going up the stairs, Holly was cursing so much that Jude had to cover Elize's ears.

"You should watch your language!" Leia shouted.

"Make me!" Holly retorted. At last, they came to the top of the stairs, Holly shouting "Finally!" After going out the back of the shrine, the group entered the rift into the Fractured Dimension. "What do we do now?"

"We need to search for the divergence catalyst and destroy it. That will destroy this world and bring us back to the Prime Dimension," Gaius told her.

"An' how do we find that?" Lancer asked.

"It's usually the thing that differs the most from its original nature in the Prime Dimension," Jude replied.

"An' Ludger's the only one who can destroy it? That kinda takes out all the fun," Lancer sulked.

Muzet giggled. "We can beat it up, but only Ludger can fully get rid of it."

Holly was tired from all of this walking. "Let's get this over with."

Climbing the Hallowmont was full of Holly's complaints about this day being full of physical effort. At the summit, there was nothing.

"What now?" Lancer asked.

Holly bent over, panting. "Please don't tell me we did all of that climbing for nothing!"

Rowen stroked his beard, thinking. "The rift usually takes us to the area the divergence catalyst is in, but I don't see anything."

"Should we turn back?" Leia asked.

"Please no!" Holly exclaimed. As the group walked to the edge of the summit, a dagger shot out at Holly from behind, near the far back wall. Lancer reacted before his Master did, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her away. The others, surprised by the sudden attack, only had enough time to turn around and take a few steps back. The dagger hit the ground where Holly was, shattering the earth around it. The weapon was attached to a chain. The chain went rigid as if someone tugged on it and the dagger was pulled back. A moment later, someone stepped from the shadows created from the wall and faced the group. It was a woman with long lavender hair. Her eyes were covered by a magenta visor. A red symbol on her forehead was above it. She wore black, strapless dress, long black boots that covered most of her thighs, and back gloves that covered her forearms. All had purple edges. In both hands were two daggers connected to a long chain.

"This feelin'...a Servant!" Lancer growled, baring his fangs.

Elize clutched her hands together in fear. "Is that the divergence catalyst?"

Ludger shook his head. "The chromatus isn't reacting. She must not be it."

Lancer grinned like a wolf. "This aura...she's a Rider Servant!"

Rider seemed to look up, her visor at the demigod. "I assume from the aura you give off that you're a Lancer, am I wrong?"

Gae Bolg materialized in Lancer's hand in red light. Rider raised the knives. "Bloodshed is not necessary for this war."

"Whaddaya mean?" Lancer snarled. "The Holy Grail shows up when only one Master-Servant pair remains! I find it hard to believe ya weren't made aware of that."

Rider chuckled. "There's another way. All of us Servants could pool together our mana and make the Holy Grail appear."

Lancer and Holly looked surprised. "If that's all it would take, why hasn't it been done sooner?" Lancer asked.

"Massive amounts of mana are needed," the blindfolded woman said. "It made past Masters think what was needed was a fight to the death. However, it's ultimately Servant's mana that fill the Grail. We should have enough total mana to make it appear."

Lancer narrowed his eyes. This woman seemed to be giving off a dark aura as well. "Are ya hidin' somethin'? Plus, I highly doubt the others will agree. The Holy Grail will only grant one Servant or Master's wish."

Rider grinned, revealing two fangs that were longer than Lancer's. "I have the approval of the other five. At most, we just need six."

"If ya already have the amount ya need, why ask fer my help?"

"As long as one's still fighting, the mana the Servant gives off may interfere with the summoning."

"Even if yer plan works, the Servants will fight each other fer possession. It's easier to fight Servants one on one than all together."

Rider's smile went away. "I can see that you won't be persuaded. The amount of mana a dead Servant feeds the Grail, coupled with the other five and I pooling together enough mana together, will be enough to summon it."

Lancer let go of Holly. He grinned. "Except I'm not gonna die."

Rider seemed to crouch down. "We'll see how long that arrogance of yours lasts."

Rider jumped up and launched her left dagger at Lancer. As he used Gae Bolg to block and knock it away, Muzet launched a ball of gravity at the Servant. The woman flipped to the side in mid air, dodging the attack. Holly and Elize finished casting, using Dark Visitor while Rider was in the air. The woman threw her other dagger, it planting itself in a rock. She yanked on the chain, pulling herself away from the spell. She retreived the dagger and backflipped to avoid Alvin's Legacy. Instead, the bullets ripped into the rock. As she landed, Jude and Milla used Shattering Demon Fist and Death Knell respectively. The Servant jumped out of the way just as the fist and sword cracked the ground. She threw both daggers at the two. Gaius moved in front of the two and used the blunt side of his katana to block each strike. Ludger ran at the blindfolded woman, twin swords ready for his attack.

Rider chuckled and faced the man. "Release Breaker Gorgon!" Her visor fell off and dissolved into violet mana, two pink eyes staring at Ludger. He recoiled a bit and turned to stone.

"What the hell?!" Alvin exclaimed. He charged at the woman, broadsword and gun at the ready. Rider turned to stare at him and his entire body turned to stone.

Holly narrowed her eyes. She wasn't a huge history buff, but she'd heard of a woman who turned anyone who looked into her eyes to stone.

Lancer growled, going to his Master to protect her. "So yer Medusa, aren't ya?" Medusa smirked and looked at the knight. Holly knew what was going to happen as her gaze met the snake's, but to her surprise, she didn't turn to stone. The Gorgon let out a low snarl and gazed at the others. But nothing happened to them as well.

"What's going on?!" Leia exclaimed. She had been protecting Elize.

"Her eyes won't work on those with high magic power," Lancer explained.

"Alvin and Ludger are Elympion, so they don't use magic," Teepo said. Jude looked at Elize.

"After this battle, use Panacea Bottles on those two!"

Elize gave a small nod. "Got it!"

Holly broke into a full sprint, charging at Medusa. The bandages seemed to burst as a demonic hand appeared and covered her entire left arm. The hand and arm were black, with red veins along the arm. The palm was red and claws stuck from each fingertip. It was shaped like a dragon's hand or foot. She quickly reached into her bag with her left arm and took out a red gem. In the palm of the demon hand, it was enveloped in red mist and vanished. As soon as it did, the left hand was cloaked it flames. She lashed out that hand, intending to deeply scratch the snake. The chain between the Servant's daggers was thrown in front of the enemy. Holly's claws collided with the links. In that instant, the woman shot forward and sunk her right dagger into Holly's gut. She ripped it out and prepared to strike Holly's face with the other dagger.

"Fireball!" Rowen's quick spirit arte made Medusa flip back. Lancer and Jude ran over to Holly.

"Master!" Lancer exclaimed.

Holly's eyebrow twitched. "I said not to call me Master!" The flames around her left hand vanished as the spell wore off. Jude crouched down next to the woman and started casting Healer over the blossoming red stain on her shirt. Her hand shrunk back down to normal, the bandages suddenly appearing to cover it.

Rider struck at Elize, but Leia warded her off with Cerberus strike. The Gorgon snapped her head around to look behind her and tried jumping to the side, but the surprise attack scored her left hip. Lancer had charged at Medusa, full of fury, and swung Gae Bolg sideways. The woman landed in a crouching position on all fours, like a cat ready to pounce. She jumped over Gaius' Demon Fang and Muzet's Elemental Hymn. As Lancer rushed at the Gorgon, the woman struck with one dagger. It ground against the shaft of the red spear, sparks flying. They broke apart and Rider launched one dagger at Lancer as she was jumping back. The demigod used his spear to block, but Rider tugged on the chain as her weapon was knocked to his right. The knife flew back at the man, point first. He turned to knock it away, but was too distracted to see Medusa run at him. She used her other dagger to cut him from his left hip to his right shoulder.

"Lancer!" Holly cried out. She stood up, but Jude pulled her back down.

"I haven't finished healing you yet! The wound is much deeper than I thought, and you shouldn't move too much until I'm done!" Hope gazed at Lancer, feeling helpless. At least the cut on him looked pretty shallow.

Rider jumped back, purring as she crouched and licked the blood from the dagger. Lancer glanced down, red eyes blank, and watched as drops of scarlet from his chest hit the ground.

He grinned, revealing his fangs and the air around him felt electric. "Is that all ya can do woman?! Even non-Servants can give me more of a rush!"

He was shouting like he was insane. All the others felt the intensity coming from Lancer and huddled near the trail back down the Hallowmont, taking the petrified Alvin and Ludger with them. Jude helped Holly over to the others where it would be safe.

Rider jumped high up and Lancer shielded his eyes from the bright light from the Gorgon. When it faded, Lancer uncovered his eyes to see the woman on top of a glowing white winged horse, Pegasus.

Rider smirked, looking down at the Servant with cold, pink eyes. "Bellerophon!"

Holly facepalmed. "I can't believe I forgot Pegasus was the son of Poseidon and came from the blood of Medusa!"

Leia sweatdropped. "You have a bad memory for history, don't you?"

"Hey! I'm just not a huge fan of it!"

Jude looked up at his childhood friend. "Aren't you even wore when it comes to history, Leia?"

The reporter turned bright red. "Shut up! This doesn't involve you, Jude!"

Lancer changed his grin and looked like a madman as he hefted his spear up over his head, aiming the tip at the enemy as red mana swirled around it. The simple mana attack, the first one, probably wouldn't work. He would have to hurl the spear itself.

"Gae...Bolg!" At the same time he threw his weapon, the spear flying through the air at speeds like a bullet, golden reins appeared over Pegasus' mouth and Medusa grabbed them. The horse dove down at Lancer like a comet, white light shining from it. The spear hit the shot of energy that was Pegasus. Medusa smirked.

"So you're the Hound of Ulster, Cu Chulainn? As if a lowly dog such as yourself can beat Pegasus!"

The hero stared at the match between Gae Bolg and Pegasus. Energy still covered both, but they had both stopped and were each trying to break through the other. Gae Bolg suddenly dissolved into red mana and Pegasus continued his devastating charge at the Irishman.

"What?!" Lancer's red eyes widened and he snarled. He may not make it out of this alive. Luckily for him, Holly had expected this outcome and asked Milla for a favor.

"Undine!" The Great Spirit of Water appeared in front of Milla and launched a jet of water at the knight. It slammed into the demigod's side and pushed him out of the way of Pegasus. However, it was a moment too late. The charge of light tore Lancer right above his left hip, blood splattering the ground. Lancer winced a bit, but acted instantly. Pegasus ran into the edge, buried deeply in earth as Rider and he wrestled to get free. Medusa suddenly felt a sharp pain in her chest and blood fell from her mouth as she coughed it up. Lancer resummoned Gae Bolg in his right hand and jumped over Rider. He used the spear to stab the Servant, piercing her though the heart. Pegasus neighed and disappeared in a burst of golden mana. Cu Chulainn stepped back out of the crater, taking the snake's bloodied body with him. The woman fell to the ground as the warrior pulled his spear out.

"Are you all right, Lancer?" Holly asked as she ran over to her Servant, despite Jude telling her not to.

Lancer had Gae Bolg dissolve so he could wrap his right arm around his Master, pulling her close. "I'm fine. I'm just glad ya are, too." Rider cackled, making blood fly out of her mouth and into the air. Her sight and strength were leaving her, but she used what she had left to speak.

"So... _that's_ how...it is...between...you two..."

Lancer snarled down at the woman. "Whaddaya mean?!"

Medusa just chuckled as her body started to vanish into purple mana. As soon as the snake had completely vanished, Elize took out a Panacea Bottle out and poured the contents on Ludger. She did the same for Alvin. As the stone over their bodies faded, they looked around wildly.

"Where's Rider?!" they both demanded. Gaius crossed his arms.

"You two missed most of the battle. The important thing is that Lancer has already killed her."

Alvin put a hand to his head like he was having a headache. "What happened to us..?"

"She turned you both to stone, but we were able to use Panacea Bottles on the both of you," Leia told him. Teepo flew up in front of Alvin's face, grinning.

"Yeah, you were useless!"

Alvin grabbed Teepo and started stretching him. "Try saying that again!"

While the Teepo abuse was going on, Ludger noticed a bird land on the opposite edge of the cliff from the group. Strange. That type of bird was supposed to be extinct. He saw dark purple energy come from the bird.

Lancer noticed this, too. In a flash, he let go of Holly as Gae Bolg appeared in his hand. He shot forward and cut the tendons in the bird's wings so it couldn't fly away.

"This it?" Lancer asked as he stepped back. Blood was pouring from the wings as the bird struggled to move them so it could fly. Ludger gave a terse nod as he walked toward the bird, his chromatus appearing on him. He stabbed the bird with his spear and it suddenly went still. He pulled out an orb of black-purple energy. It made a soft ticking noise and shattered. The bird's body went black and broke apart, the pieces flying away. White light grew on the tip of the Lance. Soon, the world shattered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I had wrote the first 1000 words on the same day I published this story. It took me up until now to type the battle with Rider. The next time I update this, I'll be 19.


	3. Assassin in the Shadows

The sun was going down by the time the group returned to Nia Khera. Lancer's injuries had scabbed over and would probably be all healed by morning. Mana was used by him to fix the tears in his clothing. He switched to some modern clothes consisting of a white t-shirt (he wanted to put on a Hawaiian one, but Holly didn't want to be seen next to him while he was wearing it) and black pants before he entered town. Holly couldn't wait to wash the blood from her clothes. It had already dried and made her shirt feel all stiff.

The villagers were (more than happy) to let the group sleep in a few houses. It went Jude, Milla, and Ludger in one house, Leia and Alvin in another, Elize, Rowen, and Teepo in another, Gaius and Muzet together, and Holly and Lancer in the last.

"Who would've thought we'd run into Rider!" Holly said as she scrubbed her shirt over a bucket. She wore a white towel over her chest.

"All that matters is that there's five left," Lancer replied, leaning against a wall. Holly finished wringing the water out and hung her shirt to dry.

"...Do you think we were put in the same house for a reason?"

Lancer grinned. "Nah. We're the two newcomers here. Besides, the others wouldn't hear the end of it from me if I wasn't in the same house as ya so I can protect ya."

Holly wanted to facepalm. "I'm not helpless, you know?"

"True, but I'd feel better watchin' my Master's back."

Holly spun around, glaring at her Servant. "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Master?!"

"Yer cute when ya get worked up. By the way, how're ya doin'?" As Lancer walked over to Holly to check her injuries under the bandages (though she'd probably punch him since the area he's going to check is near her boobs), his horrible luck kicked in and her tripped over a rug and started falling forward. Crashes resounded through the house as he knocked things over and he ended up barreling over his Master. Her face went bright red at the position the two were in. He had fallen on the woman, knocking her down on the ground, with his lips against hers.

Jude came barging through the door, of all the horrible times.

"I heard a crash! Are you guys- -" Jude's eyes went wide. "S-Sorry!"

What happened next was even worse. The rest of the group came running, stopping at the doorway.

"What happ- -" Leia cut herself off, taking in the scene.

"Did we interrupt something?" Gaius asked.

Milla put a hand to her chin. "Are you two about to direct-tether?"

Alvin laughed. "About time! Should we get Elize and the spud out of here while you two do a Jude and Milla?"

"We haven't done _that_!" Jude protested.

"Don't get the wrong idea!" Holly exclaimed, pushing Lancer slightly up. "Lancer just fell on top of me! It doesn't mean anything!"

Lancer smirked. "Just admit that ya were waitin' fer somethin' like this to happen."

Holly grit her teeth. "You aren't helping!"

* * *

The next day, the group left Nia Khera. While going through the Kijara Seafalls, Holly swore she could _hear_ the others talk behind her back about what happened with her and Lancer the other day.

"Shut _up_!" Holly shouted when she and the others were by the waterfall. She had taken the lead. She snapped around. " _Nothing_ happened between me and Lancer, so cut it out with the gossip!" The others were staring at her with wide eyes. "What? I'm just tired of you guys saying that something happened."

Elize was the first to speak up. "Holly!"

"Behind you!" As soon as he said that, Lancer shot out and pulled his Master away. At the same time, a red tentacle swept the ground. Lancer landed near the group in a crouching position, setting the woman down. The next moment, he had summoned Gae Bolg in his right hand and had changed into his battle attire. The others took out their weapons, Ludger taking out his two swords. Holly turned her head to see behind her and saw what the threat was a creature with a large, green shell, six short legs, two tentacles with red at the ends, a red-tipped tail, and a purple-blue body. A Greater Demon.

"But how?! It was supposed to have already been killed!" Holly exclaimed.

Alvin used his gun to shoot one tentacle a few times as it came down on the group, making the monster rear it back. "It must be an EX." Milla went on one end of Leia's lowered staff. She then swung it up, launching the spirit into the air.

"Death Knell!" Milla came down on the shell of the monster with her sword. However, she was only able to make a large crack on it. The beast howled and tried to shake the woman off.

Jude ran at the Elite Monster. "Swallow Dance!" The arte distracted the beast long enough for Milla to get off and away, but it whipped one tentacle, smashing into Jude's abdomen and sending him flying back. While Elize ran over to Jude to help him, Muzet used Sharpened Roots right after Gaius' Hydra Strike.

"Pulse Shot!" The arte Alvin used was blocked by the beast's jet of water. While it was doing this, Holly's demon hand showed up and was coated in several sparks of lightning after it devoured a purple gem. She clawed the shell. The monster attempted to knock her away with a tentacle, but she jumped back in time.

"Do it, Rowen!" He had been casting for Blue Sphere. The lightning that lingered on the shell boosted the spirit arte's power. The monster cried out as it was electrocuted. Ludger used part of Tiger Blade to knock the monster into the air while Elize cast Dark Gaze. As soon as it landed, Leia ran up to it and used Staff Rain.

"Final Gale!" Jude and Milla had Linked. By now, the monster was covered in cuts.

"Not done yet!" Lancer jumped up over the beast and smashed the shell with the shaft of his spear, shattering it. Lancer jumped off while the monster tried to swat him with one tentacle.

"Freeze Lancer!" As Rowen's spell hit the back of the monster, it jumped slightly up. Just as it spun around, Muzet flew up, unleashing a ball of gravity. As it hit the exposed back, Gaius jumped up on the back of the monster, cutting it with his katana. The underside of the monster hit the ground and Elize finished it with Negative Gate.

* * *

Back in Trigleph, Lancer switched back to his modern clothes before the group exchanged a tentacle from the Greater Demon for the reward money.

"We'd better tell Vera about the Servants in the Fractured Dimensions," Ludger suggested.

"Even if we do, she couldn't do anything about it," Holly pointed out.

Jude stepped forward. "Maybe not, but she may be able to find clues for where we should look."

Inside the Spirius Building was a woman with black hair and wearing glasses over blue eyes. She was talking to a girl that looked the same except she didn't wear glasses. Part of her hair, in the same area as Ludger, was white. She wore all pink, unlike the other who wore white.

The girl wearing pink was the first to notice the group, waving. "Ludger! I swear every time I see you there's more of you!"

The woman in white glanced over at the other. "Indoor voice, Nova."

Nova pouted. "You can be a real stick in the mud, Vera."

Vera glanced at Holly and Lancer. "Excuse me for asking, Vice President Kresnik, but who are these two?"

Ludger scratched the back of his head. "Holly and Lancer. They're actually part of the reason I wanted to see you. You see..."

After Ludger finished explaining finding Rider in a Fractured Dimension, plus the possibility of the other five Servants being in Fractured Dimensions as well, as well as wanting Vera's help in finding them, Nova crossed her arms.

"I can't say there have been any whispers of Servants at the bank."

"Of course," Holly said. "Any outsiders aren't allowed to know any details of the Holy Grail War. Only a few mages only hear the mention of the war."

Vera closed her eyes, holding her clipboard close. "I'm afraid that we can't help since we don't know what presence we're looking for."

Milla stepped up next to Ludger. "Since Servants are spirits, you could search for traces of them."

"As Rieze Maxia is rich in them in all dimensions, finding a certain type of spirit will be next to impossible," Vera replied.

Lancer stepped forward. "Searching for spirits with a similar mana signature to me should help."

Vera looked Lancer over. "Hmm...it could work. I'll need a mana sample from you."

Vera pulled out a device. It was circular with black edges and a blue center. As Lancer produced mana outside his body, the device absorbed it like a sponge.

Milla crossed her arms. "I take it that's a type of spyrix?"

Holly just stared at the woman. "A what?"

Vera nodded. "Correct, but this type doesn't produce artes. Instead, it just takes samples of mana, whether by spirits or produced from Rieze Maxians."

Gaius crossed his arms. "Will that allow you to locate the other Servants?"

"Not precisely which one, but it should help narrow down the list of possible Fractured Dimensions they could be in."

* * *

That night, Holly and Lancer went into the 2nd floor apartment. Holly flopped down on the bed.

"I am _so_ glad to be in my bed after two days!"

Lancer gave a grin and winked. "Wanna have fun on it?"

Holly glared. She had her face buried in her pillow. "As if, asshole!" She sat up and took a clear gem off her nearby shelf. "I need to go out of this town to do this."

Lancer put his hands behind his head and leaned back against the wall. "I'll go with ya, since I hafta protect my Master."

Holly walked toward the door. "Fine, whatever. Just don't get in my way."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Lancer followed Holly as she went to the Alest Highroad. She stopped where the Scorpactus is. Like the rest of the monsters in this area, it was gone and sleeping.

"In case something goes wrong with this process, I want the explosion to be away from the town." Holly set the gem on the ground and took a step back. Several red rings surrounded her, red mana floating up. She closed her eyes to concentrate. She had both hands moved out in front of her. The mana flowed into the gem. The circles around Holly vanished and the gem turned red.

Lancer stared at Holly as the woman picked up the gem, putting it into her bag. "How'd ya do that?!"

"I store mana of certain elements in here. When the arm eats them, the mana is released and coats the arm with that element until the mana runs out. The more mana I store, the bigger risk of it backlashing violently. As in an explosion. Like that device Vera used, the gems' purpose is for storing mana."

"Do ya hafta do this a lot?"

"Only when I want to replace gems that I used."

Lancer sniffed the air. "Do ya smell that?"

Holly gave him an "I can't believe you would ask me" look. "Of course not! Unlike you, I don't have a dog's sense of smell!"

Lancer gave her a quick glare. "I'm not a dog!"

Holly sighed. "Whatever you say. What do you smell?"

Lancer narrowed his eyes. "Someone else is here!" He switched to his battle uniform and blue mana appeared right over his right hand, moving over it and Gae Bolg showed up in it.

"How?! I _made_ sure we weren't followed!"

"No. It came just now," Lancer snarled. He suddenly grabbed Holly and jumped back, taking her with him. A split-second later, a figure dropped down right where the two were just standing and the ground seemed to explode, dust being thrown up in a cloud.

"What the hell is that?!" Holly exclaimed. The dust covered the spot where the figure landed. All she could see was a shadow.

"I feel it...it's a Servant!" the demigod growled.

"But I thought all the other Servants were in Fractured Dimensions!" The figure stepped out of the dust cloud, in front of Lancer and his Master. It was a man wearing blue and purple samurai garb. He had blue eyes and long, blue hair tied in a ponytail. In his right hand was a long katana.

Lancer bared his fangs. "So I'm guessin' yer Assassin by the aura ya give off?"

The samurai smirked. "I am Kojiro Sasaki. Am I correct in assuming you're a Lancer?"

Holly had her mouth gaping. "What Servant reveals his identity?!"

Lancer grinned. "Obviously one that's not thinkin' clearly." His expression turned serious. "Why are ya in the Prime Dimension?"

"To be honest, we have no clue what dimension you're in. We just enter rifts at random and hope we land in the right one."

Lancer glared at Kojiro. "So ya found us purely by chance, huh? So the others are leapin' through 'em as well?"

Holly facepalmed. "If that's the case, Vera won't be of much help."

Kojiro raised his katana. "After I'm done with you, the rest of us will summon the Holy Grail. The mana you and Rider's dead bodies give the Grail will greatly aid us."

Holly glanced at Lancer. Out of the corners of her eyes, she noticed him looking around. "What's wrong?"

"Like with Rider, I don't see Assassin's Master anywhere. That bugs me." Holly just noticed this as well. Normally, a Master is near their Servant. This helps them get enough mana for fighting other Servants. "Look fer his Master. When ya find that person, kill 'em."

He was right. No matter how strong a Servant is, their weakness is always their Master. Without a Master, Servants will fade away once they run out of mana, given that they don't make a new pact before that happens.

As soon as Holly went looking, Kojiro attacked her. However, Lancer moved behind his Master and blocked the katana with his spear.

Lancer grinned. "I don't think so. Yer opponent is me." The samurai took the katana with him as he jumped back. Lancer charged at him, stabbing at the man several times with his spear. The enemy used the katana to block all of them. Right after the last one, Kojiro slashed down during that brief pause. The Irishman held the spear up so the blade would collide with the shaft. The samurai stepped back just as Lancer used Gae Bolg to knock the katana up and slashed horizontally. However, part his robes over the abdomen were cut, though not enough to draw blood. He raised the katana and thrust it at Lancer's chest. The spearman held the spear vertically and tried to throw the strike off. The blade of the sword skid over the shaft of the red spear. However, it made a small cut on Lancer's upper left arm. He swung the tip down, but Kojiro raised the sword up over his head to block.

Holly showed up behind him right then. "I couldn't find Assassin's Master anywhere!"

"I had a feelin' that would be the case." Lancer pulled Gae Bolg back and threw a kick at the samurai. Kojiro smirked and leaped over it. He pointed the tip of the katana down and plunged it into the knight's leg, pinning it to the ground. "Son of a bitch, that hurts!"

The demon hand on Holly showed itself as the woman slashed at the swordsman, rage blazing in her eyes. Even though the man jumped back, he brought the katana with him, freeing Lancer's leg.

"Are you okay?" she asked her Servant. Blood gushing from his wound was staining one pants leg.

"Yeah, I'm good. Jeez, this hurts! Assassin is so dead fer this! Get back, Holly. I'm gonna use my Noble Phantasm to make this bastard pay!" Lancer changed his stance, having the tip of his spear pointing at the ground. Red mana swirled around it.

"Good to see you're finally getting serious," Kojiro said, grinning. "I think it's about time I do as well." He brought one foot back, grabbing the handle of his katana with both hands, holding it horizontally and over his shoulder.

The ground shattered as Lancer ran a few steps forward, the spear glowing red. "Gae...Bolg!"

His arm shot forward like he was going to throw it, but a beam of red came from the spear instead, going for Assassin's heart at blinding speeds. There was no time for him to do anything as the attack hit, going out the man's back and making blood fall to the ground.

"What the hell?!" Holly and Lancer exclaimed when the red vanished. The attack did indeed hit, but it wasn't a fatal shot like it should've been. Instead of hitting the enemy's heart, it instead bored a hole through Assassin's left shoulder.

"Wait a minute." Holly checked the swordsman's stats. After she did, she facepalmed. "His luck is A. _That's_ why Gae Bolg didn't kill him."

Assassin's attack was next. "Ultimate...Swallow Reversal!" The first strike, the katana slashed down at the juncture between Lancer's neck and left shoulder. He used his spear to block, but that's when the two invisible horizontal attacks hit. The warrior's middle right side of his chest and right above his left hip were cut deeply.

"Lancer!" Holly cried out. She ran forward and caught the man as he fell back. Blood was soaking her shorts.

He coughed up red. "Damn...him..!" The demigod tried getting to his feet, but he fell back down. "Shit..!"

Holly grabbed one of his hands. "You shouldn't move too much with those wounds! I don't want you dying on me!"

Assassin was walking towards the two. When he was in front of them, he raised the katana over his head. "Time to die!"

Two gunshots were heard and Assassin lowered the sword and used the flat side to block the bullets. Alvin was holding his gun up and sideways. "When Ludger tried to call you, you wouldn't answer. So he went to your apartment to check up on you. However, you weren't there. So he calls the rest of us since Balan and Jude let the rest of us use their apartments. We went looking for you when we heard fighting coming from over here."

Gaius lunged at the Servant, katana flying as he swung it. Kojiro used his own to block it, the two blades grinding against one another, sparks flying. Milla went over to Holly and Lancer.

"You should've let us know you were facing an enemy. That way, we could've helped."

"Hey! We didn't expect to encounter Assassin!" Holly protested. "But more importantly, Lancer needs help!"

Jude and Elize ran over to the Master, kneeling by Lancer. The man's breaths were ragged and a bunch of blood had already pooled around him. Leia was jumping through the air, slamming one end of her staff down on Kojiro. The samurai's greater strength allowed him to push Gaius back and brought his sword up, the staff meeting the blade. A few moments later, Leia smirked and jumped back. The next moment, Muzet hurled a giant ball of gravity at the man. Rowen was up next.

"Dagger Rhapsody!" The ball of gravity managed to slow down Assassin enough to where the daggers dug into his chest. As Milla, Alvin, and Ludger were slashing at the man mercilessly with their swords, Jude and Elize were using healing artes on Lancer.

"His injuries are really serious!" Elize told Holly. Both were working on the large gashes. The top of the knight's bodysuit was drenched in blood and sweat.

Sweat dripped of Jude's face. "Damn..! We don't have enough mana to deal with this completely! The wounds are so bad we can manage to just barely stop the bleeding!"

"Do whatever you can!" Holly exclaimed. Lancer was barely conscious and was resting his head in her lap.

During the fighting, Assassin had blocked so much his katana was cracked.

"Damn you!" Alvin swung the broadsword down with all of his strength. Kojiro held his sword up to block, but the blade shattered as Alvin's ground against his. The broken part dissolved into blue mana as the blade of the opposing one cut his right shoulder deeply. The man stumbled back and saw Milla use Whirling Assault. Several wounds appeared over his gut. Before he could react, Gaius shot forward and plunged the blade of his katana into Assassin's chest. Blood flew from the Servant's mouth.

Once the man had vanished into blue mana, Alvin and the others went over to Holly and Lancer.

"How is he?"

Jude stood up, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Elize and I have stopped most of the bleeding, though the wounds are still oozing blood."

Holly had one of the demigod's arms wrapped around the back of her neck while supporting him as he stood up. While helping him back into the city, she couldn't help but think about that encounter with Assassin. Only four Servants to go. But it was clear that they could show up in the Prime Dimension as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before I saw Fate, I only knew a little about King Arthur, Medusa, Hercules, Lancelot, and Cu Chulainn. The only thing I really remembered from Alexander the Great was his name.


	4. Danger in the Snow

The next morning, everyone met in the park outside the apartments as agreed yesterday.

"How are you doing?" Holly asked Lancer. Thanks to his fast healing as a Servant, the wounds were gone, though he was still sore.

"Better than yesterday," the spearman chuckled.

"So what's this meeting about?" Elize asked.

"I was thinking we should check up on Kanbalar," Gaius replied. Holly's jaw dropped.

"Way out in Rieze Maxia?!"

Alvin put his hands lazily behind his head. "Stop being a whiner."

"Do I have to go?" Holly moaned.

Gaius crossed his arms. "Yes. Since the Assassin incident, it would be better for us to stay together when traveling."

Lancer grinned at Holly. "At least we get a chance to sightsee!"

"It's a friggin' icebox there!" Holly exclaimed. "All there is to see there is snow, snow, and more snow!"

Leia put her hands on her hips. "Just bundle up and you'll be fine! You don't need to have such a negative outlook on things!"

Holly turned her head away and stuck out her lower lip like she was pouting. "I'm not being negative! I'm just being realistic!"

* * *

After gathering the supplies that would be needed, the group made it to the Mon Highlands. In Marksburg, a man went up to Holly. They talked a bit and he handed her a clear gem. In return, she gave him a bag of gald.

"What was _that_?" Alvin asked. Holly put the gem in her bag.

"They're for storing mana of a certain element."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "I take it that's what you use in conjunction with your demon arm?"

Holly nodded. "I usually only have one gem for each element. I still need a new lightning-element one, but with where we're going I'll make another fire-element gem."

"So who was that?" Elize asked.

"Just a merchant. He delivers these from a group that digs up special mana-absorbing gems. I pay them for the deliveries."

"What do you even do for a living?" Muzet asked.

"Just bounty hunting, whether it be monsters or people," Holly replied.

In the middle of the Mon Highlands, the sun was down.

"We'd better set up camp," Rowen said. Holly wanted to punch someone.

"We're seriously going to spend the night here?! It's _freezing_!"

Jude looked over at the woman. "It's better than wasting our energy by trudging through this wasteland blind."

Holly reluctantly gave in and the group settled themselves in a large dent in the cliff wall. Holly started to get out a wool blanket when Lancer came over.

"Ya wanna sit next to each other? I don't exactly have my own blanket."

"You didn't pack one?! Dumbass." Holly unraveled some of the blanket around her. Lancer grinned and cuddled up next to her, wrapping some of the blanket over himself. He took of the armor over his shoulders because he didn't want cold metal on him all night and he knew that if he kept them on Holly would complain that it felt like icecubes were pressing into her. Every hour, there would be keeping watch outside where camp was set up for monsters. Gaius had the first watch. Holly pressed herself into Lancer. The air was freezing and the warmth he was giving off was very inviting. Milla and Jude were doing the same, except Jude had his head resting up against Milla's chest.

Alvin smirked at Holly and Lancer. "Are you gonna sleep with the cryptkeeper's dad [1]?"

Holly just stared at him. "What do you mean?"

"We know when the legend of Cu Chulainn was from. Despite how young he looks, he's about as old as when the schism was created!"

"Oh come on! He's been dead for most of that time!"

* * *

After Gaius, it was Alvin's turn to keep watch. Once his shift was done, he got Holly woken up for her turn. Lancer was leaning back against the wall, sawing logs. Careful not to wake the Servant, Holly moved away from him and walked just outside the opening of the indention. Alvin went back to sleep. The only light was the shine from the moon reflecting off the snow.

"Whatcha doin'?" The first thing Holly saw as she turned around were those crimson eyes with the serpentine pupils. They were glowing faintly in the night. At first, she thought it was an enemy. Then she saw the handsome face and realized it was the demigod.

"Just keeping watch. It's my turn. What's up?"

"I'm a light sleeper, so I knew ya had left my side. It's my duty to protect ya."

"I can take care of myself just fine. I'm not a baby," she retorted. Lancer chuckled and wrapped one arm around her. Holly instantly felt warm and snuggled deeper into his chest, his warm breath ghosting over her head.

"I know, I know. I just don't want anythin' to happen to ya 'cause I'm not around."

"Because I'm your Master?"

"'Cause yer important to me." Holly looked up, staring at his face. Lancer was grinning like he was joking, though his eyes were gentle and full of affection.

"You're important to me, too. That's why I hate seeing you get hurt for my sake." She cupped the sides of the Servant's face and pulled his head down so she could kiss him. Lancer's eyes widened for a moment. He thought he would be the first to make a move! He closed them and caressed the left side of Holly's face with one hand, moving it up under her black hair.

"'Bout time we get a show!"

Holly abruptly broke off the kiss with Lancer. Alvin was sitting with his back against the wall, grinning like an idiot. To the Master's horror, she saw the other eight were up as well. Teepo was floating to the left of Elize, eyes wide just like the mage.

"...How much did you see..?" Holly asked tentatively.

"Starting from when you kissed him," Leia replied, a little shaken. Rowen chuckled. He could see this coming from a mile away.

"Are you guys...going to be like Jude and Milla?" Elize asked timidly.

"If you are, don't do anything more with the rest of us around," Ludger said.

"GO TO SLEEP!" Holly shouted.

Muzet smirked. "Alvin couldn't, so he woke up the rest of us when you two were about to kiss."

At least Holly knew who to kill now. "STOP WATCHING AND SLEEP!"

* * *

The next morning, the group got ready to head for Kanbalar again. Lancer was sticking close to the black-haired woman and it didn't go unnoticed by the others. The wind was howling and the two couples, Lancer and Holly, and Jude and Milla, huddled together.

"How do you get over these whispers about you and someone else?" Holly whispered to Jude.

Jude shrugged. "You just get used to it, I guess. I barely even notice anymore."

"You two kissed, which is farther than Jude and I have gone," Milla pointed out.

"What about those stories about what you and Jude did on top of that waterfall?!" Holly demanded.

Jude turned red. "T-That's a secret!"

Alvin smirked. "I bet they went to third base."

Jude looked mad, but his face was still red from embarrassment. "Stop saying that's what happened!"

Gaius looked to be at the end of his patience. "Will you five please _be quiet_?!"

"I didn't even say anything!" Lancer protested.

Rowen sighed. "Since Holly said something, as her boyfriend, it counts as you saying something too."

"We just kissed! That doesn't make us boyfriend and girlfriend!" Holly exclaimed.

Alvin grinned. "You two are living together and work together, so we'd only assume you two are in a relationship."

Holly glared at the merchant. "Oh shut up!"

A little ways further in, they could see the entrance to Kanbalar. It was just a little ways away.

"About time!" Holly exclaimed. She ran ahead of the group.

"Watch out!" Lancer shouted. He shot forward so he was right next to his Master, Gae Bolg in his left hand. He held it up just as a tail came sweeping from the left. It collided with the shaft and Lancer grabbed Holly, jumping back with her.

There was a roar and a white-blue body spun around. It was an Arctic Wing [2]. It was shaped like a much bigger version of the Snow Dragons, except it had two giant horns sprouting out from right over each eye and they were straight and white-grey. Two wings came from its back. Each had a full hand where the thumbs are supposed to be. The webbing in the wings and the underbelly were light blue. The underbelly looked like massive scales, except they had white fur on the left and right edges. In the middle of each was a blue claw that curved up and had red tips. Each eye was red, though both had a smaller version of it under each one. The tail that trailed behind it had claws that curved in the direction of behind it. They ran up the dragon from near the tip of its tail to the back of its head. Like the ones on the underbelly, they all had red tips. White fur was on the ends of its cheeks closest to the back of its head. The bottom of its chin had four horns, two near the front of the bottom jaw and two right behind them. It grinned, revealing sharp white teeth.

The dragon roared and four ice daggers, two on each side, formed. It fired them and Milla ran in front of the group.

"Efreet!" The Great Spirit of Fire appeared and flames came out of his mouth. It was aimed at the arte. The flames engulfed the ice and melted them. Even though it was her last one (She had just infused it the other day), Holly had her demon hand devour the red gem, covering the hand in flames. She shot past Milla and Efreet and jumped up, hand reared back behind her to slash down. As she did so, the right wing of the dragon blocked it, flames shooting out above the ends of it.

"Hell Fryer!" Alvin's arte made the monster stagger back. Holly jumped off, casting a spell as soon as she landed. The one she was casting was high-leveled, so it would take some time. Jude used Maxwell and the enemy exhaled a large amount of freezing air, nullifying it. The dragon spun to the right, whipping its tail as it did. Elize jumped back and Leia jumped up.

"Soaring Blast!" The attack knocked the enemy's head down, chin colliding with the ground.

"Endless Waltz!" Ludger slashed the downed enemy and jumped back just as Gaius came in.

"Beast!" He rammed his shoulder into the dragon's face. A moment later, a red lion's head came from it. The monster reared back, eyes screwed shut. At that time, Holly finished casting.

"Flame Dragon [3]!" The flaming dragon bashed into the enemy one. The Arctic Wing had both wings against the ground, shoulders heaving as it panted. It opened its mouth to fire another attack. Lancer went in front of Holly to protect her and Muzet prepared for Spire Throw.

What happened next took everyone by surprise.

A half-naked giant with brown-grey skit came down on the dragon's head with its ax. Blood gushed from the wound and painted the snow deep red. Before it could recover, the behemoth turned to the left in a full circle, bringing the ax with it. The edge smashed into the Elite Monster's chin, making the head be thrown back and for it to rear back it recoil, exposing the underbelly. Without missing a beat, the beast flicked the ax up, slicing the underbelly open vertically. The dragon gave a mix between a cry and a whine and fell sideways, the right side of it hitting the snow hard as blood flowed from the cut in the underbelly like waves, hitting the ground as the four red eyes glazed over.

Fire still enveloped Holly's demonic hand. "I've never seen that before! Is that a Servant?!"

Lancer snarled. "Yeah. Berserker, by the aura I'm readin'."

"It killed that Elite Monster like it was nothing!" Jude exclaimed.

Holly checked Berserker's stats. "Be careful! He's crazy strong!" She glanced at Lancer. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

Lancer grinned. "Don't forget who yer talkin' to! Either way, I have ya watchin' my back an' backin' me up!"

"Just don't go getting yourself killed!"

Berserker roared and charged. The ax came down hard as Lancer pushed Holly away, holding his spear up and sideways so the blade hit the shaft. The earth shattered under the demigod as he grunted, trying to withstand the pressure.

Gaius jumped up and tried to cut Berserker's right shoulder. The katana hit the skin without cutting it. It was like rock. The beast kicked the king away. Blood exited his mouth and his chest ached where he had been kicked. It was clear a couple of ribs were probably broken.

Alvin and Ludger each fired their guns. The bullets bounced off Berseker's skin. The giant raised his ax off Gae Bolg. Lancer immediately slashed at the neck, but the Servant bent over backwards, the spear cutting the air above him. He jumped straight up, flipping so he landed on his feet before punching the man in the gut. After he flew back, the giant turned to the two gunmen. Red covered his body as he brought the ax up over his head with both hands. He brought it down, shattering the earth. The path of the destruction went over to the men. A smokescreen of dust appeared when it hit them. When it was gone, Alvin and Ludger were a few meters away from the end of the trail of risen earth and on their backs, several bleeding cuts over both.

 _'This'll graze those too slow to move out of the way fast enough!'_ Holly looked around and realized Muzet was missing. She looked up and saw the spirit in the air, forming an enormous ball of gravity. "Catch!"

Muzet threw the orb down, the others reacting fast enough to dive for cover away from the attack. Berserker didn't even make a move to try evading, just stood there as purple enveloped his body. At that moment, Rowen finished casting.

"Air Pressure!" With those two attacks, Berserker wouldn't be able to move until they were done.

"Overdrive!" Milla tried to bore through the behemoth's abdomen with her sword, but couldn't even make a scratch in it.

Holly swiped with flaming claws horizontally. Berserker held his ax to the side, blocking them. At that moment, the mana ran out and the flames vanished. The giant knocked the woman down with a stomp to her gut. Blood flew from her mouth from it. Before she could react, Berserker brought the ax over his head with one arm, ready to bring it down.

"Holly!" As the beast slashed downwards, Lancer grabbed Holly, moving to the front of her and shielding her. The ax hit the man's back and cut him from his right shoulder to his left hip, slicing flesh deeply and blood spraying everywhere.

"Lancer!" Holly screamed. She had both hands on his chest, holding him up as he started to fall forward. His back was already soaked by the red liquid.

"Damn, that hurt," he grunted. Sweat was making some strands of his hair stick to his face. Jude and Elize ran over, trying to heal the Irishman.

Holly had settled her Servant down so his face was in her lap. His back was facing out so the two healers could tend to the wound. Hot blood covered Holly's hands and made them feel sticky. The sickening red matched Lancer's eyes, which were shut as he lost consciousness.

Milla charged at Berserker, swinging her sword. The Servant grabbed it in his left hand. He quickly slashed the spirit across her abdomen with the ax in his right hand. The spirit was knocked far back. Her back was in the snow and she was breathing heavily, blood saturating the snow as her gut went up and down with each breath.

"Milla!" Jude cried out. He ran over to the spirit, leaving Elize to handle Lancer.

"Dammit..!" Alvin spat as he used his sword to support himself as he got up. Berserker's attack really sliced him and Ludger up. The other man had taken more of the attack than he did. The front of his shirt was almost entirely blood-soaked. Ludger was unconscious and blood surrounded him. Alvin ran at the giant, swinging the broadsword. "Cross Cleave!"

Berserker swung the ax to the side, knocking the broadsword out of Alvin's hands. He blinked a few times in surprise before the ax came down, slicing his right shoulder deeply. The man fell to the ground with a groan, his blood painting the beast's skin. Leia and Rowen ran over to Alvin and helped the man away while Muzet used Sharpened Roots to drive the Servant away. The weren't as good as Jude and Elize when it came to healing, but they would try their hardest.

Muzet used Sweet Heart to heal Gaius enough to where the king charged at the giant. It didn't matter. As he jumped up to bring his katana down on the beast's head, Berserker punched the man down in the abdomen. The king lay on his back in the snow at the feet of the Servant, eyes squeezed shut and teeth grit against the pain. Berserker stabbed the ax down, forcing the end through the man's abdomen. The beast ripped the ax out, blood bubbling from the king to pool around him, joining the blood coming from his back. Rowen reacted to this.

"Your Highness!"

Muzet flew down and stopped him from going over to to the king. Gaius had lost consciousness, massive trails of blood leading from his mouth where he coughed it up. Leia was trying her best to heal Alvin on her own.

"Get out of the way, Muzet!" the old man demanded. The spirit shook her head.

"I can't. It won't help if you end up just like Gaius."

Rowen growled and started casting a fire spell. "Fireball!"

It hit the snow and steam quickly rose up, blinding Berserker. When it vanished, all eleven opponents were gone. The only thing left were several pools of blood.

* * *

The group had hightailed it to the entrance to Kanbalar. Holly carried Lancer, Muzet carried Gaius, Leia carried Alvin, Elize helped Jude carry Milla, and Rowen carried Ludger.

"Is that guy invincible or something?!" Leia demanded. Alvin's blood was staining her clothes.

Holly was panting. For someone made up of mana, Lancer sure was heavy. "I don't think so...There must be some sort of trick..."

"I hope we figure it out before we face Berserker again," Elize fretted. The stench of blood was heavy.

Holly glanced at Lancer. She had one of his arms wrapped around the back of her neck and one hand around his waist, hoisting him up. The blood loss made his skin paler than it already was. "I hope so, too."

"We can talk about this later! We need to find a doctor!" Jude pointed out.

"I can just see the people of Kanbalar freaking out over the state of their king," Muzet murmured.

"Regardless of that, these people need help," Holly said. They went into the city, not at all prepared for the sight that greeted them. Most of the houses were smashed. Broken pieces of wood littered the roads. In some buildings, smoke billowed from the holes in the walls. The entire city looked like the aftermath of war.

"What happened here?" Jude gasped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [1] I called an old lady celebrating her 109th birthday on the news the cryptkeeper's mom.
> 
> [2] Elite Monster I made up.
> 
> [3] Spell from Tales of Vesperia. Elize, Rowen, and Milla have many different spells so why not Holly?


	5. Aftermath

As the six went into the ruined city, several people were running around. Guards were everywhere, trying to keep order.

"What in Maxwell's name happened?!" Rowen demanded from one of the guards.

"Prime Minister Rowen! Well, you see..." Then he saw Gaius' bloodied body. "King Gaius! What the hell is going on?!"

Holly stepped forward, holding an injured Lancer. "We'll explain later! We need a medic to see to these people right away!"

"Unfortunately, our medics are busy seeing to the people of this city."

"I'm a doctor! I just need some of your equipment!" Jude proclaimed.

The guard pointed to one of the least-damaged houses. "The hospital is right there. One of the doctors is there seeing to some citizens. He can provide you with what you need."

"Thanks!" Jude said. He and the others hurried toward the building the guard pointed out. Inside, they ran to the front desk. A woman took one look at the five injured people and gasped.

"Oh my! What happened?!"

"No time!" Leia told her. "We need a room for these people ASAP!"

The woman nodded hurridly and grabbed the phone, talking into it, panicked. A moment later, several men carrying stretchers ran into the room. Once they were set down, the injured comrade were set on them. Jude stepped forward.

"I went to medical school, so I can help since you guys are stretched thin."

The men were in too much of a hurry to ask questions. They nodded and lifted up the stretchers. As they ran through the large doors they first came through, Jude followed them.

* * *

Later in the day, Rowen was going around town, asking about what incident occurred in Kanbalar. He was talking to a group of guards in front of one destroyed shop.

"Can any of you tell me what disaster befell this city?" the old man asked. One of the guards turned to him. Even though his face was covered by a helmet, it was clear he was surprised.

"Prime Minister! We didn't realize you were there!"

"Don't worry about that, but what happened to Kanbalar?"

Another guard piped up with the answer. "A giant appeared out of nowhere and started wrecking the city with his ax!"

Rowen started. "A giant with an ax?! By any chance, did it have brown-grey skin and black hair?"

"Uh, yeah it did. Why?"

Rowen grit his teeth. Berserker must have destroyed the city looking for them. The group's encounter with the Servant in the Mon Highlands must've been right after it ruined Kanbalar. If only the encounter with the Arctic Wing hadn't happened, they might have been able to stop the beast.

"I want the guards increased at the entrance to the Mon Highlands!" the Conductor ordered. "Attack anything you see matching that description!"

One guard cocked his head. "Why the Mon Highlands? Did something happen there? And where's King Gaius?"

"We ran into that giant there. Gaius, as well as four others, were gravely wounded in the encounter."

A guard went erect. "Is the king okay?!"

"We were close enough to here that we were able to treat them in time."

"I'm glad the king is safe at least," a guard sighed with relief.

"Indeed."

* * *

In the hospital, each of the five were bandaged and were each resting in beds. Their shirts were off while their injuries were treated. Jude insisted the doctors keep Milla's bra on. Since Alvin was one of the unconscious, Leia took it upon herself to tease Jude about his need to satisfy his hormones. The other four, except Rowen, who was out, and Muzet, who was floating, were in chairs near the beds of their injured friends.

"I had no idea Berserker would be that strong," Muzet murmured, staring down at Gaius. Bandages covered his abdomen, red in one spot where his wound had bled through.

"That's a Servant for you," Holly replied. She was holding one of Lancer's hands. He was on his stomach so the slice on his back would get irritated.

"Can they all be that powerful?" Elize asked. She was sitting near Ludger. Bandages covered almost all of his chest.

"Some can," the mage told her. "What surprised me was that he has high grades in all parameters. Most are A. I didn't expect that from a Berserker."

"Do you know what the deal is with his skin?" Jude questioned. He was near Milla. Like Gaius, she had bandages around her abdomen.

Holly shook her head. "I don't really know. It looked to me like some sort of Noble Phantasm. If that's the case, then we need to find out its weak point." Holly had her head down and started to cry, squeezing the spearman's hand. "Damn, if only I had thought this through, this wouldn't have happened!"

"Don't blame yerself." Holly looked up. The demigod near her had his red eyes open. Even though they were the same shade as blood, she found them comforting. "Ya couldn't have known how strong Berserker was goin' in."

"But if I had come up with a plan, this wouldn't have happened to you or the others," the Master replied.

"This wasn't all yer responsibility. At least now we have an idea of what we're dealin' with."

"He's right," Muzet added. It looked like she was sitting in midair. She had her legs up and her arms on her lap. "We all share in the blame for this. It wasn't all your fault."

Lancer glanced at the bandages on his body. "Dammit, not again! An' where the hell is my top?! I'm freezin'!"

Holly smiled. "Now you know how I feel."

The Irishman pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "I normally give off enough body heat to keep myself warm even in my battle clothes. I know I could have my modern clothes appear, but that would tell any outsider who even glances in that I'm not normal after seein' me wearin' blood-free clothes." Lancer continued, more seriously now. "I think I have an idea of who Berserker is."

"You do?!" Holly exclaimed.

"Yeah. I could feel that he's a demigod like me. Then ya add in the fact he's insanely strong."

Holly's eyes widened. "He's Hercules! None of our attacks working must be part of his Noble Phantasm!" Lancer chuckled then winced as the cut opened and blood began soaking the bandages after they drenched the pad with the ointment. "Hey! Be careful not to bleed so much or open your wound that you bleed out all of your mana or use it all up trying to stop the bleeding!" The bandages were bright red. Holly put one hand on them. They were wet and when she pulled her hand away and looked at it, it was covered in crimson liquid. "Jude!"

The teen was already on it. Holly sat her Servant up while Jude replaced the pad and the bandages.

Lancer grimaced against the pain. His Master helped lay him back down on the bed. "We need to work out a plan fer next time we see him."

Holly shook her head. "Not now. You need to rest, not worry about when we face Berserker again."

Lancer looked at her seriously. "Don't even _think_ 'bout facin' him without me!"

"Are you crazy, Holly?!" Leia exclaimed. "He'll _destroy_ you!"

"Hold up! I wasn't!" Holly protested.

"Bullshit. Ya were gonna," Lancer put in.

Holly glanced at the warrior. "How do you know?"

"Were bound by our pact. I can sense yer intentions."

"That's an invasion of privacy!"

"It helps me to know when yer 'bout to do somethin' retarded."

Holly lowered her gaze to the floor. "I just don't want you almost dying again."

Lancer sighed loudly. "It won't matter if ya die 'cause I will, too."

* * *

Later, Holly went for a walk around town. Lancer insisted on following her in case she ran into Berserker. Of course, she was against this and almost used a Command Seal to make him stay put, but she eventually gave into his reasoning.

"Man, I can't believe Berserker did all of this," the mage murmured as she surveyed the destruction in another part of town. Rowen had come into the hospital room and told those conscious what had happened.

"I'm not surprised, considerin' how easily we got our asses kicked," the spearman replied. He sighed and leaned over her left shoulder. "We both know I'm the only one that stands the greatest chance of beatin' Berserker."

"I know, but I don't want you to get hurt protecting me."

Lancer grabbed her shoulders and turned her around she she was looking into his red eyes. "It doesn't matter! I fight because I have ya lookin' out fer me. If I let ya die, I would lose the will to even live!"

Holly chuckled. "You know, I originally entered this war for the fame of winning the Holy Grail, but after being paired with you, my reason changed." She wrapped one hand around his neck, pulling him down so she could seal her lips over his. "Now, I don't want to lose you."

Lancer pulled away, eyes brimming with sadness. "I feel the same. But whether or not we get our hands on Heaven's Feel, I'll vanish after the war's over."

Holly grit her teeth, tears forming in her eyes, about to spill over. "We'll find a way to make sure that doesn't happen! I love you, so I don't want to let you go!"

The demigod smiled sadly. "I love ya, too. But it's fer that reason that it's better if I vanish."

"Why not?"

"Ya know from my legend that I killed my loved ones, namely my best friend an' my son."

"But you didn't have much of a choice in either! If you hadn't killed them, they would have killed you!" Holly protested.

"Better me than them."

Holly shook her head. "How do you think Ferdiad would feel about killing his friend?! How would Connla feel about killing his father?!"

Lancer chuckled darkly. "If Aife brainwashed him right, Connla wouldn't be too broken up over my death." Holly snapped and slapped him over his left cheek. He recoiled and had a red handprint on it. "Ow! What the hell?!"

"Shut up! Don't talk like you want to die! Do you even know how important you are to me?!"

Lancer walked over to a piece of rubble and sat down."All right, all right. I got it. Don't make the subject 'bout my death come up 'round ya."

Holly sat down next to him. "Don't bring it up _ever_! I love you too much to have you wanting to die!"

Lancer chuckled and pulled his Master in close, kissing her. "Fine. Just as long as ya don't go dyin' on me."

* * *

In the hospital, the injured party members woke up.

"Where's Berserker?!" Alvin demanded, looking around. "Wait, where are we?"

"In Kanbalar's hospital," Rowen answered. "Lancer woke up earlier, and he and Holly went for a walk around town."

"What happened to us..?" Ludger asked, putting a hand to his forehead.

"Berserker gravely wounded you, Milla, Gaius, Alvin, and Lancer," Jude replied.

Teepo flew up so he was right in Gaius' face. "Uh-huh! And right before we saw Berserker, he destroyed the city looking for us!"

"He did what to Kanbalar?!" the king boomed.

Muzet nodded sadly. "It's true. Kanbalar is ruined." Gaius squeezed his eyes shut and grit his teeth.

"I asked for increased guards at the gate to the Mon Highlands, where we encountered Berserker," Rowen told the man.

Gaius still seemed stressed. "Good work. I want reconstruction of the city to commence immediately.

A woman who looked like Gaius ran into the room.

"Brother! I heard you were put in this city's hospital! Are you okay?!"

Gaius looked startled at the woman's sudden appearance. "Karla! What are you doing here?!"

Karla was sobbing into his chest. "You ran into the same monster that destroyed Kanbalar! I'm so glad you're alive!"

Alvin was resting his right elbow into the bed with his chin in his hand. "Hoo-boy. I forgot your sister was a crier, Gaius, just like Holly."

"Don't make fun of this, it's sweet!" Leia scolded him.

Milla put a hand to her chin. "I always thought Karla disliked Gaius. This must be what humans mean when they say someone gets angry to hide affection for another."

Teepo grinned. "That must be why Holly called Lancer a dumbass among other things!"

Jude looked startled. "Elize! Don't repeat certain things Holly says, especially her insults! Many contain curses or are a string of curses!"

Elize turned to Jude and cocked her head. "But I didn't say it, Teepo did!"

Alvin smirked. "We already know the spud vocalizes your innermost thoughts."

Muzet giggled. "Holly isn't very forward with her feelings, is she? Her way of expressing her love for Lancer must be to give him verbal abuse."

"Achoo!"

Holly, followed closely by her Servant, came into the room. "My ears are burning. Were you guys talking about me?" She looked over at Karla. "Who's she?"

"Karla Outway, Gaius' little sister," Leia replied.

"I prefer being called his 'younger sister'. In case you forgot, I'm older than you!" Karla shouted at the reporter. She looked at Gaius. "What happened to you guys when you fought that monster?!"

"None of our attacks worked. It seemed to be impervious to damage," the king told her.

"And that's how you got hurt? I expected you to move away from attacks quickly enough to not get injured," his sister said.

Lancer leaned back against one wall and had his arms crossed. "It's known as a Servant, a Heroic Spirit from any point in time. This one was agile. He dodged then counterattacked almost immediately. As another Servant, I probably stand the best chance against him."

"There are four left. Two are already dead," Holly added. What she said next was directed at Lancer. "And we'll fight him _together_! There won't be any lone wolves!"

"You guys got beaten last time. What makes you think next time will be any different?" Karla pointed out.

"We weren't prepared last time. Next time, we'll know what we're dealing with," Holly answered.

"It won't matter if we can't find his weakness..." Leia murmured.

* * *

That night, Lancer and Holly rented a room at the inn. Some of the walls were destroyed, but at least it was still standing. Jude, Leia, Muzet, Rowen, Elize, and Karla stayed in the hospital with the injured party members.

"Great, there's a draft in here..." Holly grumbled. There was a hole in the room to outside where Berserker hit.

Lancer grinned. "Wanna snuggle in that blanket?"

Holly stared at him "...Do you have an ulterior motive?"

"'Course I do! I wanted to snuggle with ya too!"

"Fine, just don't be a blanket hog."

In the bed, Holly snuggled closer to her Servant. She was freezing her ass off, even with the blanket over her, and the demigod was giving off plenty of body heat.

The fading lights made the spearman's eyes seem to glow as he gazed at her. "Are ya wantin' to have sex or somethin'?"

"Of course not. The air's cold and you're warm."

"Ya know that if we have sex, the mana transfer will make me stronger. We'll stand a better chance against Berserker."

Holly kissed him. "You're strong enough even without a mana transfer."

"Yeah, but don't ya wanna take this to the next level?"

"Maybe sometime. Just not tonight." The mage rolled over, facing away from the Servant. Lancer wrapped his arms around her body and the two went to sleep.

* * *

"What do you think they're doing together?" Leia asked.

Alvin was grinning. "10,000 gald says he's nailing her into the headboards."

Muzet giggled. "I would _love_ to see that!"

Jude covered Elize's ears. "Alvin! A little girl is present! Be careful with what you say!"

Alvin barked with laughter. "Jealous because you didn't get to lose your virginity?! Oh yeah, you did! With Milla!"

"Be quiet about that!"

Karla glanced at Gaius. "I take it something's going on between Holly and Lancer?"

"Unfortunately, yes. And Alvin won't shut up about it. Muzet doesn't help, either," the man replied.

"Hohoho! To be young and in love!" Rowen chuckled.

Muzet heard this and went silent, looking depressed.

"What is it, Muzet?" Ludger asked.

"About that...There's another detail about the war that Milla and I know about."

Milla's face looked grim. "You mean what happens after the Heaven's Feel wish, correct?"

Elize cocked her head. "Heaven's Feel?"

"The third magic, which is the Holy Grail," Milla told her.

"What about it?" Jude asked.

"Once it's won, a wish must immediately be made on Heaven's Feel. Once that's done, the Master's Servant vanishes and returns to the Throne of the Heroes."

"Wait, so Lancer..." Leia murmured.

"...Will be separated from Holly," Muzet finished sadly.

"Oh dear," Rowen muttered.

"That'll devastate her. Does she know?" Ludger asked.

Milla nodded. "Every Master knows this. She must be keeping a strong exterior, but she's probably falling apart on the inside."

"They've grown really close," Elize put in. "It'll be too sad."

Jude grit his teeth. "We have to make sure that doesn't happen!"


	6. A Possible Future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait. Fate/hollow ataraxia had finally shipped to my house from Japan. Except it needed Windows 7 or 8 and I had 10. I looked for a patch for this for two whole days. I gave up and my dad is installing 7 just for me on our family computer.
> 
> Archer fight, so MAJOR UBW spoilers.
> 
> Lancer wears modern clothes in Elympios and his battle clothes in Rieze Maxia.

The next day, the group left Kanbalar. Of course, Berserker was no longer in the Mon Highlands when they passed through it. In Xian Du, Alvin stopped and sniffed.

"Does anyone else smell wet dog?"

"It's coming from those two!" Elize piped up, pointing at Holly and Lancer.

"I DO NOT smell like a wet dog!" Holly shouted.

Alvin plugged his nose. "Jeez, like the wild animal smell coming from Lancer isn't bad enough!"

"I don't smell anything!" Holly insisted.

Jude did the same as Alvin. "You're probably too used to it to smell it, but the melted snow made the smell overpowering."

"You've been spending too much time with Lancer!" Ludger covered his nose with both hands.

Leia looked like she was going to get sick. "Ugh, PLEASE take a shower as soon as we get back to Trigleph!"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Holly screamed.

They were almost through Lakutum Highroad, Vera called Ludger. He opened it and put it near his ear.

"DODA here. We've detected a new Fractured Dimension. According to our data, there is a high chance of a Servant. The rift is near Fenmont. I'll send you the coordinates. Please take action."

Holly sighed. "The Servants are jumping through Fractured Dimensions, so there's a good chance it isn't there anymore. That aside, let's get this over with."

"Please do." The fact Vera heard Holly made her jump.

"At least the location of the rift is still in Rieze Maxia," Leia said to the woman.

* * *

After the boat ride to Fenmont, Ludger used the DODA mark on the collar of his shirt to make the rift visible.

"Have any idea what the divergence catalyst will be this time?" Holly asked Ludger.

"We won't know until we ask around in the Fractured Dimension," Jude replied.

Once entering the rift, the group showed up in Fenmont's plaza.

"We should split up and ask around for anything that seems out of place," Milla suggested.

"You're right," Ludger agreed. We should go in teams of two. If anyone runs into trouble, they should call the rest of us. Meet back here in half an hour."

The group split themselves up like they had in the housing thing in Nia Khera. After asking around a bit, Holly and Lancer learned there was something going on just outside of Fenmont, in the Barnauer Highroad.

"The divergence catalyst might be there," Holly whispered to the knight at her side.

"Shouldn't we call the others?" Lancer asked.

"We'll just check it out. Afterwards, we'll call Ludger."

Lancer still looked uncertain, but followed his Master into the Barnauer Highroad, near the end of the first area. The glow of the lumen trees lit up the dark area.

"Hide!" Holly hissed. The two hid behind a rock. To Holly's surprise, she saw Lancer. "What the hell?!"

"Is that...a Fractured version of me?"

"What I want to know is why would you be there."

"Beats me."

"Hey, why aren't the Servants after any Fractured counterparts?!"

"I can sense it gives off mana, but not enough to interfere with the summoning of the Holy Grail."

"So it's not worth their time."

"Wait! Someone else is comin'!" The next person was a Fractured Holly, taking the Primes by surprise.

"What am I doing?!" Holly nearly shouted.

"That's what I wanna know," Lancer replied. Fractured Holly went over to her Servant.

"You wanted to see me?" she asked.

Fractured Lancer grinned. "I wanted to ask ya somethin'."

"The reason you dragged me out here was to ask me something?!" the mage exclaimed.

Lancer went down on one knee, presenting a ring. "Will ya marry me?"

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Prime Holly whispered, though it was more like a shout right in Lancer's ear.

Lancer unplugged his ears. "Is this in the future?"

"I don't know, but things have moved fast."

Fractured Holly covered her mouth with both hands and had tears in her eyes. "...Yes, I will!"

Prime Holly looked to be on the verge of blowing up. "What about the damn Holy Grail War?!"

Lancer peered at Fractured Holly's hand. They were hiding on the right side of their Fractured counterparts. "I don't see the Command Seals. What happened to 'em?"

Fractured Lancer embraced the woman. The next second, an arrow pierced through Holly's back and went through Lancer.

"What...the..?" Fractured Holly murmured.

Prime Holly stood up, appearing over the rock. "What just happened?!"

The demigod grabbed the back of the woman's shirt, yanking her down. "Get down!"

As he said that, a man showed up and from the side of the Fractures. Using the two swords, he stabbed them both in the head before the arrow vanished. Fractured Holly crumpled to the ground while Fractured Lancer vanished into blue mana. The man had silver hair, grey eyes, and tan skin. He wore a black suit with a red mantle over it. In both hands were a pair of swords, one white and one black and both covered in blood.

"That MONSTER!" Holly roared. The demon hand appeared and she jumped out from behind the rock before Lancer grabbed her, stopping her. she charged at the enemy, swinging the clawed hand. The man smirked and held up his left sword, blocking the attack. He kicked the mage in the gut, sending her flying back. Lancer caught her as she passed the rock. She snarled and went at the man again, red mist seeming to explode from the demonic hand. The enemy tried to block with the same sword, but it snapped and he was slashed over his chest.

A new sword appeared in the man's hand. He was about to attack the Master, but Lancer pulled her away as she was cursing at the enemy.

"Calm down!" Lancer told her.

"Even if it was a Fractured version, no one kills you and gets away with it!" she howled, struggling in her Servant's grip. Red mist seemed to cover her entire left arm. "Just let me at that bastard!"

"Well, that 'bastard' is a Servant. You'll die if ya go in alone. Besides, I wanna tear him apart fer killin' ya as well, even if it was a Fracture."

Holly seemed to calm down a bit, but she was still furious. "Whatever. Since that was an arrow first, I assume he's an Archer?"

The Servant took this chance to charge at the two, swinging his right sword sideways. Lancer shifted his grip so he was holding Holly in his right hand. He held out his left and Gae Bolg appeared in it. The sword collided with the spear's shaft and Lancer slashed with it. The man jumped back to avoid it.

"Son of a bitch! I'm readin' his aura an' it's tellin' me he's an Archer. But he uses two swords instead!" the spearman growled. He stood up, releasing Holly right next to him. He held onto the demonic spear with both hands. "Just let me handle this. Ya need to stay back an' back me up."

"Are you insane?! I'll fight alongside you!" Holly protested.

Lancer bared his fangs. "The feelin' I'm gettin' from him tells me he isn't as tough as Berserker, but he's still strong!"

"All the more reason I should help!" Holly insisted. She ran around the warrior.

"Holly! Get back here!" Lancer shouted, but the woman didn't listen. She had her left hand devour a light blue-white gem. Ice covered the entire left arm and was long and sharp over the claws. White mist billowed off the surface of the ice.

Holly growled and brought the clawed hand down on the enemy. Archer used his right sword to block it right over his head. At the same time, he slashed right at the woman with the other. The mage backstepped, but it cut her left arm,starting at the bottom of her armpit down to the heel of her palm.

Lancer shot forward and grabbed Holly, pulling her back, just as Archer was going to finish her off with a downward cut to the head. Blood was staining the left side of Holly's shirt and the hand shrunk back down, bandages covering it as the arm hung limply at her side.

"Damn! I can't move it!" Holly spat, watching red soak through the bandages, some dripping to the ground and making a few blades of grass bend under the weight of the liquid.

Lancer caressed her face with his right hand. "This is why I said to leave it to me," he said.

"Fine, just be careful," Holly replied. Lancer grinned and stood up, turning so he was facing Archer. The enemy vanished and Lancer reacted in time to block the sword that came at him with Gae Bolg. The two jumped up, clashing in midair. Archer used both swords to block the spear stab.

"I've never heard of an Archer wielding two swords!" Lancer snarled as the two landed. "But whatever the reason is, I'm not 'bout to give ya enough time to get your bow out!" He charged at the man, stabbing repeatedly. Archer used his sword to block every attack."Just who the hell are ya?!"

Archer smirked as he knocked Lancer's spear thrust to the side. "Even if I told you, it wouldn't mean anything to you. The reason is that I'm a hero from the future."

"A future hero..?" Holly murmured Lancer stabbed at Archer again and the man crossed both swords and brought them up, pushing the spear's tip over his head, the swords still below it, sparks flying as Lancer struggled to force it down, but the arms holding the swords wouldn't budge.

"Then it wouldn't hurt to at least name yourself!" Lancer pulled the spear back and jumped back just as Archer swung one sword at his legs.

Archer chuckled. "Well, I at least know who you are. No one can wield a spear like you, Cu Chulainn."

"You know who he is after that brief exchange of blows?!" Holly exclaimed.

Lancer let out an animalistic growl. "Who are you?!"

"The Heroic Spirit, EMIYA," Archer replied. "I was a little younger than Holly when I studied various legends."

Lancer ran at the man, swinging his spear. Archer jumped back. The swords vanished into blue mana and a black bow appeared in his left hand. A spiral sword appeared in his right hand. He set it in the bow and pulled it back, the weapon thinning until it looked like an arrow.

"Oh shit!" Lancer exclaimed as he recognized the weapon. He ran over to Holly and forced her behind a rock. At that moment, Archer fired.

"I am the bone of my sword...Caladbolg!"

It ripped into Lancer's side and he seemed to vanish in the explosion.

* * *

"Where the hell are Holly and Lancer?!" Ludger demanded. He and the rest of the group met up in the plaza to discuss their theories on what the divergence catalyst is based on what the civilians have said.

"Maybe they went to third base and lost track of time," Alvin chucked.

"Alvin! You shouldn't say stuff like that in front of Elize!" Jude scolded.

Alvin laughed. "Don't get your panties in a bunch, kid!"

Muzet giggled. "I wonder if they are doing anything like that." _'And if they are, I want to see it!'_

Gaius ignored Alvin and Jude. "Did anyone find anything?"

"No, but from what I gather from what people have said, this is a couple of years in the future," Leia said.

Rowen stroked his beard. "Holly and Lancer may have found something. They may be investigating it and aren't here as a result."

Milla crossed her arms and Elize looked over at her. "What's wrong?"

"I feel a mana presence similar to Lancer's in the direction of the Barnauer Highroad."

"Could it be a Servant?" Ludger asked the spirit.

Milla looked up. "I also feel Lancer's own mana coming from there."

"He and Holly wouldn't attack it alone, would they?!" Jude exclaimed.

Gaius crossed his arms. "This is different from the Assassin fight. They didn't know they would find him. This time, Vera even warned us there was a strong chance of a Servant being here."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "I wonder if they wanted to keep the rest of us out of it since the whole war deals with them."

An explosion made them all jump. It lit up the night sky.

"That was in the Barnauer Highroad!" Muzet exclaimed. "I wonder if Holly and Lancer are in trouble?!"

Ludger grit his teeth. "Their problem or not, we need to help them!"

* * *

Holly covered her face with her right arm against the onslaught of dirt thrown at her from the explosion. Her left arm still refused to budge. "Lancer!"

When the dust from the explosion cleared, Lancer was on his stomach at the edge of an enormous crater. Blood spilled from his left side. Much of it was blown away and the fabric at the edges were drenched in crimson. He was groaning and trying to crawl away from the crater. Archer grinned and jumped at the demigod, both swords in his hands again.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Holly screamed. Before he had tried attacking Lancer, Hope had been casting. "Freeze Lancer!" As the man stepped back, using both swords to defend himself, Holly was casting again. "Ground Dasher!"

Head still on the ground, Lancer glanced up at his Master. "Holly..." he whispered, blood spilling from his mouth. He struggled to his feet, Gae Bolg appearing in one hand. "I...can still...fight..."

Holly was casting again, rage burning in her eyes. "Just let me take care of this! You're hurt! Thunder Sword!"

"I'll still...protect you..!" He jumped up, blood raining down on Holly. Red mana swirled around his spear. "Gae...Bolg!" He threw the spear, falling straight down. Holly grabbed him in time, falling as well from the sudden weight being dumped in just one arm.

Archer didn't move. Like it would do him any good against the cursed spear. He held up his right hand. "I am the bone of my sword. Rho Ais!"

A flower and seven shields, one for each petal, appeared. The tip of the spear collided with the first shield. It shattered the shield, causing one of the flower's petals to disappear. In Lancer's weakened state, the spear only destroyed three more shields before vanishing.

Lancer got up, Gae Bolg showing up in his hand. He was breathing heavily, blood dripping from his wound. Once the flower vanished, Holly unleashed a quick spell. "Fireball!"

Archer evaded in time. "You're annoying me! I am the bone of my sword. Unknown to death, nor known to life. Unlimited Blade Works!"

A bright light from Archer blinded the two. When it was gone, they were in a wasteland. Giant gears were behind Archer and swords dotting the place were sticking out of the ground.

Holly looked around. "A reality marble?!"

Lancer tried to take a step forward and started to fall, landing on Holly's left shoulder. Archer wasted no time as he made several swords appear above him. The all fired at once at Holly. Lancer summoned up all the strength he had left to move in front of Holly, using his spear to deflect the swords. I between Lancer's blocks, Archer appeared in front of the Servant, the usual swords in both hands. He stabbed the Irishman through the gut with one. Just as he was going to stab Lancer with the other, Holly ran around the knight and tacked the enemy.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE, DAMN YOU!" she roared. The sword went through her right shoulder, but she was too angry to notice. She began punching him over and over in the face. A few swords appeared and stabbed themselves in the woman's back. Archer grinned and kicked her away just as the swords vanished. Lancer caught her, but was too weak to prevent himself from flying back. They were both on their backs, blood mixing together. Archer walked over to him. At that moment, the reality marble vanished.

"We finally did it!" Sylph cheered. He and the rest of the Four, along with Milla and Muzet, had been working to destroy it.

"Holly! Lancer!" Leia cried out.

"Elize! Help me with the healing!" Jude shouted as he ran toward the Master and Servant.

"Now it's time for you to handle all of us!" Alvin growled. Archer smirked.

"Unfortunately, I'm almost out of mana. I'll play with you guys some other time." With that, blue mana covered Archer and he vanished.

Where Jude and Elize were, Holly was hugging Lancer. "I'm glad...you weren't killed..." She glanced over at the ring near Fractured Holly. "Do you...feel that strongly...about me..?"

Lancer grinned. "...Ya know I do..."

Ludger glanced over at the ring. black-purple swirling energy covered it. "I think we just found our catalyst." His chromatus appeared on him and he walked over to it.

Leia gasped. "Did someone propose to Holly?! I wonder who..." She looked to Holly for any ideas, but the woman and the demigod had already fallen unconscious.

Alvin grinned. "That one should be easy! It was clearly her Servant!"

"If that's true and this is years later, then their should be a way to keep Lancer around!" Elize stated.

Rowen stroked his beard. "I wonder how that will be possible..." A moment later, the world shattered.


	7. Holly vs Ivar

The group rushed back to Trigleph. Holly and Lancer only had temporary bandages. Alvin carried Holly and Gaius carried Lancer. Gaius had his jacket over Lancer so he wouldn't stand out in Elympios. The only other one that would fit him was Alvin's, but he bitched about getting blood on his expensive coat.

They set Holly and Lancer on the two beds in Jude's room (he got the second for Milla.) The teen worked on healing both of them while Elize was passed out from exhaustion from doing the same. Both had better bandages put on their wounds from fighting Archer.

Time passed and Holly woke up first, sitting up. Her left arm was sore and hurting.

"Where am I?" she asked.

Milla was keeping an eye on Lancer's mana levels. Jude was passed out on his couch in the other room after pushing himself too hard. The other two residents, Gaius and Muzet, were in Balan's apartment with Alvin, Leia, Rowen, and Elize, who was awake. "You're in Jude's apartment, in Trigleph. You've been out for three days."

Holly looked herself over. Her shirt was off, only her bra and shorts still on. Bandages were around her abdomen right below her bra as well as on her right shoulder. New bandages covered her left arm. There was a dull, throbbing pain in it. Then she looked around. "Where's Lancer?!"

Milla blinked at her then held her eyes downcast. "He's here, but he's low on mana. The bleeding on his abdomen was stopped, but not the other. He started to vanish a few times, but Muzet and I, despite not being Masters, were able to give him just barely enough mana to keep his physical form."

Holly looked over at the demigod. He was sleeping, albet looking uncomfortable. He was groaning, sweat covered his face, and breathing hard. His blue hair was out of it's usual golden clasp and several of the long strands stuck to his face. His top was off, allowing Holly to see the thick layers of bandages over the wound on his side. Despite this, blood had drenched them and covered the sheets. Jude was probably planning on washing the sheets, but it looked like that now he would have to replace the mattress under the warrior. He looked to be so low on mana he couldn't even speed up the wound's healing. Once it had healed naturally, it was going to leave a nasty scar.

"I don't know how we can keep him from vanishing completely," Milla continued.

Holly gulped. She knew a mana transfer would be required. However, since the amount of mana she gives him won't exceed his limits, he won't gain power. Reading about this was one thing, but actually doing it was another matter entirely. However if she didn't, he would die.

She took a deep breath and got out of bed.

"You shouldn't move too much!" Milla warned.

"It's okay. Performing a mana transfer on him is the only way."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "Maybe one of us should do it. You're too hurt to do anything big."

"That won't work. Only a Servant's Master can perform this." She got on the bed with Lancer, moving so her arms propped her over him. She could smell blood and wild animal scent coming from him. "Please leave while I do this."

Milla cocked her head. "Why? What are you going to do?"

Holly looked at the spirit with pleading eyes. "I don't wanna say. Just please leave the room and make sure to close the door."

Milla was going to ask more, but she left the room, closing the door behind her. Jude was stirring, so she decided to help him out of the apartment room and went to Balan's to talk with the others while the mana transfer was going on.

* * *

Several minutes later, Ludger came into Balan's room after he got that call from Alvin to come over. Balan wasn't there. He was at Helioborg.

"So now we have Archer to worry about as well, huh?" Alvin said.

Gaius crossed his arms. "Holly and Lancer don't seem to want to involve us in battles with other Servants."

"It doesn't matter! They don't need to get torn up again!" Ludger exclaimed.

"So we need to concern ourselves with a battle that shouldn't involve us in the first place?" Muzet asked coldly.

"It should concern us, now that we've gotten deep into this," Jude told her.

Rowen stroked his beard. "The Servants are all strong. Maybe it isn't wise to bring Miss Elize along with us during this."

"No! I want to see this through to the end!" Elize protested.

"Yeah! Elize can help, too!" Teepo added.

Leia was staring at the door. "I wonder how Holly will handle losing Lancer?

Alvin crossed his arms. "Yeah, it's clear she loves him. Losing him will break her apart."

Jude put a hand to his chin. "There should be a way for her to stay with him like in that Fractured Dimension."

"But we don't have a lot of time left to figure it out," Milla said. "Only four Servants are left before the Holy Grail will appear and Lancer will vanish."

"That is, _if_ the other Servants don't kill him first," Muzet pointed out.

"With all of us fighting alongside them, that result shouldn't happen," Leia put in.

"But we won't be able to help if they go off on their own again," Elize said sadly.

"Yeah, there's no guarantee they won't go off on their own against a Servant like Archer," Muzet agreed.

"We should stay with them, in that case!" Ludger said.

Gaius glanced over at him. "There's no guarantee that will stop them. They may find an excuse to slip away."

"I really don't think they want a repeat of what happened with Archer," Leia said.

* * *

Holly was breathing heavily as she got her pants back on. The mana transfer worked and Lancer was awake, crimson eyes locked on his Master. As the woman plopped down on the bed on the knight's right, stomach heaving and completely exhausted, Lancer ran one hand through her black bangs.

"I take it that was needed an' not just fer the heck of it?" the man asked.

"Yeah, you were really low on mana, on the verge of vanishing," Holly replied. She rolled over so she was facing him and cupped one cheek. She didn't even seem to notice the bed she was on was covered in the spearman's blood. "I know this may sound selfish, but I would do anything to keep you from leaving me forever."

Lancer smirked and pulled her in so the mage's face was against the firm muscles of his chest. "I would too. Even though ya wouldn't like it, an' even if ya used a Command Seal tellin' me not to, I would sacrifice my entire body to keep ya safe."

"You're right, I wouldn't like it. I want you to stay by my side," Holly murmured. She reached for the first-aid kit on the nightstand without moving away from Lancer.

The man cocked his head. "What's that fer?"

"You probably want clean bandages instead of those blood-covered ones," Holly replied with a smile. She helped her Servant sit up so he was facing her. The woman carefully unraveled the old bandages and peeled away the patches. Dried and fresh blood was all over his abdomen. Holly took a wipe from the kit and wiped the blood up. Sure enough, the cut on his gut had stopped bleeding and the mana transfer had caused the massive wound on his side to stop bleeding.

"With the mana ya gave me, I'll be able to close these wounds. But there'll be some major scarring 'cause of the amount of time I couldn't heal' em," Lancer said. Without saying a word, Holly applied new ointment to the pads and got them on the demigod, putting new bandages on him so they wouldn't fall off.

Only when she was done did she speak. "It doesn't matter if they scar over; I'll still love you all the same." She reached up and wrapped one arm around the back of his neck, pulling the knight down so she could capture his lips in her own.

Lancer broke away and looked at her sadly. "Ya know we don't have that much time left together."

Holly embraced him tightly, running one hand through the soft, blue hair hanging down his back. "We'll stop you from vanishing somehow, no matter what it takes!"

Lancer chuckled darkly. "It won't matter if a Servant kills me 'fore that happens."

Tears came to Holly's eyes, and she buried her face in the man's shoulder to hide them. "I'll make sure that doesn't happen. Just make sure to fight your hardest."

Lancer grinned. "Now yer turn."

Holly lifted her face from the man's shoulder. "For what?" He grabbed her left arm and reached for the bandages. "Lancer! What are you- -"

Lancer unwrapped the bloody bandages over Holly's left arm. He held it in his lap for a moment. It was shaped just like a normal hand, but it was colored like the demonic one. "So this is what yer left hand looks like under the bandages..."

"I'm sorry you had to see it," The mage murmured. Lancer lifted it up and kissed it.

"What it looks like doesn't matter to me. It's still part of ya, an' that's all that matters."

Holly smiled. "Thanks, Lancer." Lancer didn't reply as he applied a new pad with ointment on the cut, wrapping the arm in bandages again.

Once he was done, he spoke up. "Yer still beautiful, regardless of what yer hand looks like."

* * *

Later, the group got back together. Holly said she was hungry since she hadn't eaten in three days. So the group went to Duval to eat at the bar. Except for on the train ride to the town, Lancer's wounds bothered him and made him stumble several times, so Holly assisted him in walking.

At the bar, only four could sit at each booth. So Holly and Lancer were sitting on one side. So Alvin and Leia sat on the other side. Then it went Elize and Rowen, and Gaius and Muzet. Lastly, it was Jude and Milla, with Ludger sitting across the table. When a waitress came over, Holly, Lancer, Alvin, Gaius, Muzet, Rowen, Milla and Ludger ordered beer while everyone else ordered apple juice. As the others weren't as hungry as Holly and Lancer, they ordered a large steak for the both of them.

While the two were digging in, Alvin laughed, almost spilling his beer. "You two sure can eat!"

Holly's voice sounded muffled, meat in her mouth. "I'm only eating like this because I'm hungry!"

Rowen looked over the seat. "Hohoho, at least it looks like you're feeling better, Lancer."

Gaius took a drink from his beer. "I hope you two will have enough energy for the next battle like the rest of us."

Holly swallowed her food. "Huh? You guys still want to be a part of this?"

Alvin smirked. "Like we'd back out this late into the game!"

Holly allowed a small smile to grace her lips. "Thanks."

Jude took a drink from his apple juice. "We still need to worry about finding a way to keep Lancer around after this war's over."'

Silence filled the room. Then Elize's shy voice piped up.

"As a last resort, couldn't we have the Holy Grail grant that wish?"

There's a reason that idea hadn't been suggested until now. Right after hearing about what will happen to Lancer after the Heaven's Feel wish, the spirits told the group what happens when a wish is made. Holly heard this as well before the war's start from a friend. Her father had been in the last one and told her about Heaven's Feel. Holly told Lancer shortly before the two left for Ludger's to destroy their first Fractured Dimension. All the wishes fed into Heaven's Feel are granted through mass destruction and tragedy. The landscape of Lakutum Highroad is what happened during the last wish.

"Absolutely not!" Ludger exclaimed, making the little girl flinch. Teepo flew up.

"Be nice! Elize was only trying to help!"

"Sorry, Elize," Ludger said as he took another drink from his mug of beer.

"We need to find another way! I don't want to part with Lancer!" As Holly said that, her Servant downed his beer and was pigging out on his half of the steak. The very picture of disappointment. "Seriously?"

Lancer looked up. Bits of meat were on his face and his mouth was full of steak. "Whaf?"

Alvin laughed. "It's hilarious when you say you wanna be with him when he's looking like _that_!"

Leia elbowed him. "Don't make fun of her! Lancer's clearly important to her!"

Milla put a hand to her chin. "We still need to come up with a plan for the final four Servants."

Lancer finished shewing his food and swallowed. "The last one are Berserker, Archer, Caster, an' Saber."

"Saber is hailed as one of the strongest Servant classes," Holly added.

"I dunno if Saber's stronger than this war's Berserker even! Plus, we still need to worry 'bout their Masters."

"Why is that?" Gaius asked.

"We all have Masters fer a reason," Lancer replied. "They help give us enough mana to fight an' keep our physical forms. Plus, a Master can check the stats of enemy Servants an' tell us so we can adjust our battle plan accordingly. An' all Masters are mages. The fact we haven't seen any worries me."

"So we have at least six other enemies to worry about," Muzet summarized.

"A Master is usually somewhere near their Servant to give them as much mana as possible fer battle. However, the ones we've fought have a lot of mana, even without a Master being near."

Milla crossed her arms. "So, what are you saying?"

"These Masters are no pushovers to be able to give their Servants that much mana when they aren't in battle."

The door opened and Ivar came in.

Milla looked over at him. "Ivar! What are you doing here?!"

Ivar didn't reply and pointed at Holly. "You! I want you to fight me!"

Alvin blinked a few times. "Why?"

"I got to see how strong Lancer is, but not Holly!" he answered.

Holly was eating the rest of her steak. "Just a minute!"

Milla crossed her arms. "Is this really necessary, Ivar?"

"People are around," Jude reminded him. "They'll probably call the police."

Ivar put both hands on his hips. "That's why we'll fight in the Alest Highroad!"

Lancer looked at Holly. She had finished her half of the steak. "What are ya gonna do?"

"Fight him, of course! Ever since I first saw him, there's been something about him that made me wanna beat the shit out of him."

Ivar grinned. "Then it's decided!"

* * *

Ivar led the group to the Alest Highroad, just outside Duval. Ivar and Holly were standing 10 meters away from one another, facing each other. The rest of the group were near the entrance to Duval, behind Holly.

"I put 10,000 on Holly," Alvin said.

Ivar took out his swords and went into a fighting stance. Holly's demon hand appeared and it devoured a green gem. Wind covered the entirety of the arm, blowing so hard it was visible in some areas. The wind was blowing out the top of the arm and making the woman's hair whip around. There was a long healing cut on the arm.

Elize looked over at Lancer. "Aren't you worried for her?"

The demigod grinned. "Nah. I'd actually be more worried fer Ivar. Durin' the fight with Archer, she got scary when she got mad."

Ivar struck first. He charged at Holly, swinging both swords. Holly placed her left hand on the ground and used it to throw herself into the air. Ivar's swords struck nothing and Holly came down over him, swinging the demonic hand down. Ivar held one sword up to block, but the wind over the hand severed most of the blade. The claws cut him as he jumped back, blood spotting the ground.

Ivar jumped up and desended at Holly other sword extended. Holly didn't make a move to dodge and just stood there. When the blade was right in front of her, she ducked so it would pass over her. She then threw her demonic hand up, hitting the flat of the sword and making t attack further up. She stood up again and punched the ex-agent in the gut with the other, making him fly back as the air left him. Ivar sat up and shook the daze out of his head.

The next moment, Holly's wind-enhanced claws were at his neck. "As you can see, I can be tough too."

The wind disappeared and the hand shrunk down, bandages covering it, as Ivar stood up.

"Fine, fine, you're strong as well."

"What was the purpose of this, Ivar?" Milla asked.

"I already had a taste of Lancer's strength, but not Holly's," Ivar replied. He looked at his broken sword. "Damn, I'm going to have to buy a new one."

"At least you saw my strength as well," Holly said.


	8. Hot Springs

A few days later, Ludger payed off his debt. So Nova wanted to see him near the Spirius building. When he and Rollo got there, Vera was there too.

"Wow, you really did it! You paid off the 20,000,000 gald debt! I can't believe it" Nova exclaimed.

Ludger put one hand on his hip. "Finally."

"I...think I'm gonna cry," Nova whimpered. Then she looked up. "Oh, and Ludger! I wanted to give you something to celebrate going outta debt! How about going to a hot spring...with me!"

"Huh?!" Was all Ludger said.

Even Rollo looked shocked. "Meow?!"

"Now just a minute, Nova!" Vera interrupted. "You said you were taking ME to that hot spring! Was this whole thing intended to be a gift for Ludger from the start?!"

"Uh-huh! And you're coming too!" Nova beamed at her sister. "We're gonna have a blast! This sorta thing calls for a huge celebration! Everybody's coming! The more the merrier!"

"Yeah. That sounds 'merry' all right," Vera said unenthusiastically.

"Hey, congratulations Ludger!" Jude shouted. Ludger turned around, seeing the entire group walking over to him. Holly and Lancer's wounds had healed. "I heard you got your debt paid off!"

"What great timing!" Nova said. "I was just about to call everyone together! We're gonna have a big party to celebrate Ludger getting out of debt! I'm taking everyone to the Celestial Hot Springs! Pets and dolls are welcome too! Are you guys excited?!"

"A hot spring trip? At a time like this?" Gaius asked. "On second thought, it's not a bad idea. It can be very beneficial to restore one's energy and wash away the aches and pains of battle."

"That's right...And Ludger deserves a little reward for his hard work!" Jude added.

"Meow?!"

Lancer grinned, revealing his fangs. "Hee hee, I LOVE this idea!"

Holly crossed her arms. "Don't even _think_ about being a peeping tom and cheating on me! Don't forget: I have three Command Seals I can use against you!"

"Um, Ludger? I've never actually been to a hot spring before," Elize piped up.

"So let me get this straight...Hot water just keeps flowing out of the ground?! How have we not done this sooner?!" Teepo asked.

"Perhaps I'll use this opportunity to show you the proper way a man washes one's back, Ludger," Rowen said.

"How 'bout the proper way a man washes a woman's back?" Lancer asked, glancing down at his Master.

"You just want an excuse to touch her," Jude accused him.

Alvin smirked. "He doesn't need an excuse since he's already gone to third base with her!"

Alvin was really getting on Holly's nerves. "Shut _up_!"

"And I'll bring everything we need for some pillow fights and truth or dare!" Leia added.

"I think Ludger's more excited about the prospect of co-ed bathing. Isn't that right?" Alvin asked smugly.

Ludger's eyes widened and he rapidly shook his head. "N-No!"

Milla put hand to her chin. "Ah, this must be one of those 'naked bonding experiences' which people always speak of." Jude had one foot back in shock. "Very well. I will partake in the hot spring experience with us engage in naked merriment and become better companions."

"Well put!" Rowen told her.

Lancer smirked. "Holly an' I have had a naked experience."

"When?" Alvin asked with a big grin.

"After the fight with A- -" Holly cut him off.

"None of your business!"

"Cut it out, Alvin," Gaius sighed.

"Seems like a rather brazen way of putting it though..." Jude said, looking at Milla.

"Hey, this is a party!" Muzet reminded him. "I say, go brazen...or go home!"

"Y'hear that, Ludger?" Alvin asked.

Holly crossed her arms. "As long as the boys don't get too brazen..."

"All right, gang!" Nova exclaimed. "Let's go put the 'hot' in 'hot springs'!"

* * *

\- - -Hot springs anime cutscene- - -

At the hot springs, all the girls had towels around their chests (except Muzet, who had pieces of her hair covering her boobs.)

"Aah, so this is a natural hot spring," Milla sighed.

Vera dumped water she had cupped in one hand over her back. She looked so different without her glasses on. "My back really needed this."

Nova laughed. She was sitting on the edge to the right of Vera. The top of her towel had what looked like Teepo's head. "Vera, you sound like an old woman!" Vera glowered.

Leia was on her stomach in the water. "I have to say, this is the life, isn't it?"

"I could stay here forever," Holly sighed, sliding deeper into the water from her sitting position. The bandages over her left arm were off.

"We have to come back sometime, and bring Elle with us, too," Elize said.

"Yes. Absolutely," Milla replied.

Muzet was smirking. "By the way, how's the water on your side, boys?"

Behind Milla was Teepo in the other pool. He had expanded so he was taking all of it up. He had a large towel on the top of his head.

He burped. "No complaints over here." Bits of his body expanded like he was being hit from the inside.

"Let us out! This was supposed to be a co-ed bath!" Alvin's voice sounded.

Inside of Teepo, all the boys were cramped together, only towels on their waists, and struggling to escape.

"Alvin! Stop pushing!" Jude shouted. Luger grunted as he tried to get away from the boys.

"It's clear the girls won't let us out anytime soon! I'm outta here!" Lancer exclaimed. He was right behind Jude. Alvin snapped his head over at the demigod.

"How?!"

Lancer smirked. "Like this." Blue mana went up over him as he vanished into spirit form.

"Hey! That's cheating!" Alvin shouted at the spot where Lancer was.

Jude flinched. "Don't shout right in my ear, Alvin!"

Outside of Teepo, Lancer materialized himself in the water next to his Master.

"What about him now?!" Alvin demanded, his voice booming outside of Teepo.

Holly held up her right hand, not even looking at the giant booster. "I can keep Lancer's behavior in check with my Command Seals."

"Not fair!" Alvin's voice was whiny. The inside of Teepo's body contracted, making the boys scream.

Rowen was pressed against Jude's stomach. "To think I once commanded the Rashugal army." Rollo let out a sad meow.

"Hey! I think I found the zipper!" Jude proclaimed. Gaius snapped his head around, eyes wide and blushing.

"Gahh! That is not a zipper! Take it easy!"

Jude's eyes went wide and he looked up at the king. "Sorry about that, Gaius!" Then he looked over at Ludger's towel. "What's up with the towels?" Then the area of the towel covering Ludger's butt dissolved. Jude and Alvin's eyes widened.

"They're...they're being digested!" Alvin shouted, his voice heard easily by the girls through Teepo. Various bumps appeared on Teepo as the boys went crazy.

Milla closed her eyes. "We might be close friends and all, but not nearly close enough for a co-ed bath." All the girls hummed and nodded in agreement.

Nova held up a finger, large smile on her face. "Let's hear it for Ludger...for paying off his loan!"

All the girls and Lancer pumped their fists in the air. "Hip hip, hooray!"

"Hip hip, hooray..." the boys inside Teepo muttered. Teepo's insides contracted again and they were all pushed together, screaming.

\- - -End anime cutscene- - -

Holly zoned out the noise of the boys' screaming as she wrapped her arms around Lancer's left, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"This is nice, isn't it?"

Lancer began rubbing her back. "Yeah. It's nice not having to worry 'bout the Grail War every now an' then."

"I wish it could always be like this. Then I could always be with you."

Nova leaned over near Leia. "Is something going on between Holly and Lancer?"

Leia's face turned sad as she whispered back to Nova. "Yeah, They're in love with each other, but when all the Servants are beaten, Lancer will vanish."

"Ooh, that has to be hard for them," Nova replied. Milla looked over at them.

"That's why we're doing everything we can to find a way to keep him with Holly."

Another punch inside Teepo.

"I order you girls to let us out!" That was Gaius.

Inside Teepo, Jude was rubbing his nose.

"Gaius! Your elbow hit me!"

Alvin grit his teeth. "Tough luck, kid. Get us out of here!"

* * *

Later, the group went into the lobby of the resort. There were also a series of hotel rooms in the building. All the girls put on bathrobes. Lancer had a dry towel on him. Holly wrapped the bandages over her left arm again. Teepo spat the boys out and reverted to normal size. Alvin stormed over to the girls, who were all gathered together.

"I...am...going...to...kill...all...of...you..!" He turned to Lancer. "I...am...going...to...kick...your...ass..!"

The boys and Rollo all looked like train wrecks. Holly smirked.

"Have fun?"

Ludger sprang forward and Gaius, Jude, and Rowen had to hold him back from going at the woman's throat. "Let me at her!"

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

After dinner, the group split themselves up in the rooms like they had in Nia Khera, except Rollo was with Ludger and the twins were in their own room.

Holly plopped down on the large bed in her and Lancer's room. "Soaking in the hot springs felt so great!"

Lancer chuckled. "The time I was inside Teepo wasn't."

"Yeah, but we overheard Alvin's plans for peeking. He wanted to find some way to get us to take our towels off!"

Lancer rested in bed next to his Master. He had dried off and was in his boxers. "Yeah, well single guys can be stupid."

Holly laughed. "Even though we're together, it wouldn't surprise me if you went back to your old habits!"

Lancer wrapped one arm around the mage's shoulders and pulled her in close. "Do ya really have such little faith in me?"

"I can see you losing your mind the minute we went into the hot springs."

The demigod grinned. "An' when ya start comparin' boob sizes!"

"Oh, that's nothing compared to how you guys see how long each other's dicks are!"

"We do not do that!"

"And what made you think we compare boobs?!"

Nova shouted through the wall behind the bed. "Does he really think that?!"

Vera's voice came next. She sounded like she had just woken up. "It's almost 12:00. _Go to bed you three_!"

Nova didn't speak again. Holly rested the side of her head in Lancer's chest.

* * *

The next morning, the group came yawning into the lobby.

"Are we leavin' now?" Lancer asked.

"I'm afraid so. I only paid for one night," Nova replied. Holly caught sight of Alvin. The man was clearly wasted. Leia was having to help him walk.

"What the hell happened?" the woman asked.

"He bought a bottle of wine from the lobby last night," Leia explained. "This morning, he drank most of wine."

Gaius crossed his arms. "So we have a drunk Alvin on our hands."

"Whatareya talkin' 'bout?" Alvin slurred. "I'm noth drun'!"

Jude facepalmed. "Oh, Maxwell..."

Alvin detached himself from Leia. He immediately fell to the side, knocking the reporter down.

"Alvin! Get off of me!" Leia shouted, trying to roll the man off her. Alvin looked down at her and a goofy grin etched itself on his face'

"Oh yeah, howth 'bout teruth o' dare?"

"Alvin, you should sober up first!" Jude told him. But Alvin didn't listen. He sat as upright as he could and had a giant grin.

"I'm in," Holly said, sitting down. "I'd love to see what we can get this creep to do while he's like this." Lancer sat down next to her.

Muzet giggled. "Sounds like fun!" She lowered her body, through she was floating just barely over the ground.

"Fine," Gaius sighed and sat down next to Muzet. The others gave in and sat down. Leia put a bottle down in the middle.

"This will make it fair. The spinner does truth or dare to the person the bottle points at."

"Since Alvin suggested it, he goes first," Milla said. Alvin grabbed the bottle and spun it. Then he fell down on Ludger.

"Cut it out, Alvin!" Ludger shouted, pushing him back to his sitting position. The man had spun it hard. It finally stopped, pointing at Lancer.

Alvin grinned largely. "Teruth o' dare?"

Lancer looked behind him. As drunk as he was, Alvin may ask him for something on his past. Too many people within earshot, so truth was out of the question. "Dare."

"I dareya ta haf sex wit Hoffy!"

Lancer blinked a few times. Did he hear that right?

"Alvin!" Jude exclaimed.

Leia covered her eyes with both hands. "They can't do that here!"

"This is a public place and some people under 18 are present!" Vera agreed. Holly looked completely embarrassed.

"They aren't going to do that! Pick a different dare!" Gaius shouted.

Alvin pouted. "Fine. He wiv haf sex wit Erize!"

"No sex period!" Jude shouted.


	9. Fight Against Oneself

A couple of days later, Ludger got a call from Vera. A rift to a Fractured Dimension was detected in Drellin, though no traces of the target Servants were picked up. The group made their way there on the train.

Holly had her hands lazily behind her head, leaning back in her seat. "Do we really have to do this? None of the four enemy Servants were detected," she said.

"We have to in order to preserve the Prime Dimension," Jude told her.

Holly sighed. "Let's just get this over with."

In Drellin's entrance from the train station, Ludger made the rift appear. The group went in it and showed up in the center of town.

"So now we just ask around for information on what the divergence catalyst could be, huh?" Alvin asked.

Muzet put a hand to her chin. "I wonder who we should ask first."

Leia let out a heavy sigh. "Here's hoping the enemy Servants really aren't in this dimension."

Gaius crossed his arms. "Let's all hope." He looked over at Holly and Lancer. "Oh, and no taking off on your own. We don't need a repeat of what happened last time."

Milla put a hand on her hip. "It's not entirely your burden to bear."

"We don't need a babysitter!" Holly told the spirit.

"It almost cost your lives last time. We need to make sure that doesn't happen again," Ludger said.

"We know!" Holly insisted. Then something caught her eye. "Huh? What's that?"

The rest of the group looked to where she was talking about. Fractured Holly was walking to Catamar Heights. Fractured Lancer, in modern clothes, was following her.

Prime Lancer facepalmed. "Not more Fractures of us!"

Prime Holly squinted. "What's going on with my belly?" Fractured Holly's belly was huge.

"Um, I think you're pregnant," Leia said slowly.

"Is it Lancer's child too?" Elize asked, cocking her head.

Rowen laughed. "Hohoho! I knew THIS was coming!"

It was Prime Holly's turn to facepalm. "Ugh, this must be in the future again. I can't believe you knocked me up, Lancer!"

Alvin grinned. "I'm not surprised."

Ludger narrowed his eyes. There was a glow of a divergence catalyst coming from Fractured Holly's belly. "I think we've found our divergence catalyst."

"It's the unborn child?!" Muzet gasped, covering her mouth with one hand.

"I dunno how I feel 'bout this," Prime Lancer murmured.

Holly nodded sadly. "And I know Fractured you won't just stand by and let Ludger stab my Fracture. We'll probably have to fight him."

Lancer put one hand on her back. "Ya gonna be okay?"

"I don't know if I can bring myself to fight you, even if it's a Fracture," Holly replied.

"Regardless, we need to follow them," Gaius said. The Fractures had already vanished into the Catamar Heights. The group ran into the field. They caught up with the Fractures at the end of the large area in the first spot.

"What the hell's going on?!" Fractured Holly demanded, seeing Prime Holly and Lancer.

"Ya have a twin or somethin'?" Fractured Lancer laughed.

"Hell no! And you should know that!" his Master yelled. "But I don't get why you're there, too!"

Prime Lancer's mouth went tight. "We have a job to do. An' it involves yer baby."

Fractured Holly's eyes went wide as Prime Lancer switched to his battle armor, Gae Bolg appearing in his right hand. "You can't mean you want to kill it?!"

Fractured Lancer growled and switched to his battle gear with Gae Bolg. "If yer plannin' on it, yer gonna hafta get through me!" He crouched down, holding the cursed spear in both hands. Prime Lancer let out a heavy breath and did the same. "Holly! Get outta here an' protect yerself an' the baby!" Fractured Lancer shouted.

"But what about you?!" Fractured Holly demanded. She folded her hands over her chest, right over left. They couldn't see the Command Seals on the right one.

"I'll take care of this! Just get outta here an' run away as fast as ya can!"

Fractured Holly looked uncertain, but made a break for it, running back toward the town.

"Hey! Get back here!" Alvin shouted.

"Ya all should go after her," Prime Lancer said. He was watching his Fracture carefully.

"Are you insane?!" Muzet demanded.

"Why all of us?!" Jude added.

Prime Lancer chuckled. "This is myself, an' I know all my strengths an' weaknesses. Since Fractured Holly's pregnant, she may be much more ferocious than she is now, so she'll likely be a handful." Lancer continued, more serious now. "An'...Holly shouldn't see this. I want ya all to get her away from here."

Prime Holly's red eyes widened. "Are you nuts?! I'll at least back you up!"

Prime Lancer grit his teeth. "Guys!"

As Prime Holly tried to go to her Servant's side, the rest of the party members grabbed her.

"Sorry about this, Holly!" Elize said. Alvin and Rowen restrained her kicking legs.

"Let go of me, dammit!" the mage screamed.

Prime Lancer turned his head to look at her. "An' don't even _think_ of usin' a Command Seal to teleport away from this fight!"

Prime Holly tried to punch out of the grips. "This is for your own good," Gaius told the woman. He had his arms hooked up under her armpits. As the group hurried back to town, Prime Lancer gave a sad smile.

"Sorry 'bout this, Holly."

* * *

"It's just you an' me," the Prime spearman growled. The enemy demigod pointed his spear down and began carving four runes into the ground.

"This will make it a fight to the death," Fractured Lancer chuckled darkly. "I'll kill ya fer threatenin' Holly!"

"Ath nGabla," Prime Lancer said, narrowing his eyes. "So no runnin' away fer either of us."

The Fracture grinned. "An' to make this fair, no Noble Phantasms."

That was at least somewhat of a relief. With their E-grade luck, Gae Bolg would kill the one it's launched at. At least his Fractured counterpart seemed to know that as well. So this would be a battle to test their skill with a spear.

The Fracture made the first move, going at the Prime and swinging the lance. The Prime Irishman held the spear up so the shafts collided. The Prime forced one end further into the ground and used it to propel himself up, bringing Gae Bolg with him and bringing it down, the shaft going at the other's head. The other brought his spear up to block, earth shattering as his feet sunk into it. The enemy spun the spear, knocking the other off. Prime Lancer jumped back to avoid the rapid stabs.

"Heh, yer pretty good," Prime Lancer said.

"You too. but I'm not 'bout to let ya get yer hands on Holly," Fractured Lancer snarled.

"Come on, we're the same person. Can't we get along?"

"Not gonna happen!" Fractured Lancer ran at the Prime at blinding speeds. The other ducked in time to avoid the stab. He raised his spear up, knocking up the enemy's. He quickly brought the spear back down and stood up to full height, spear drawn back with both hands so he could thrust it forward. The Fracture took a step to he side, avoiding the attack. At the same time, he threw a kick to the other's chest, knocking him away. Prime Lancer stuck the duller side of Gae Bolg into the ground to slow him down. He was holding onto the shaft and both feet dug into the ground. He finally stopped about 20 meters away, a line of broken earth left behind from the spear.

He ran forward in front of the Fracture and began rapidly stabbing. The enemy blocked them all. "Say, if the Grail War is over, how'd Holly keep ya 'round?"

"I see no reason to tell someone who's gonna die!" Fractured Lancer spat. The two spearmen clashed, shafts grinding against one another. The Prime jumped back, tracing a rune in the air.

"Ansuz!" The other ran forward, the fire sailing over him. The Prime held up his spear, tip pointed at the Fracture as he ran at him with the intent to stab. As the two met, blood flew into the air and everything went silent as the two Servants were right in front of one another, spear tips extending past the other's chest.

* * *

"Damn, she's fast!" Alvin snarled. The group had chased Fractured Holly into Drellin. She managed to get away again when the group caught up to her.

"For someone who looks nine months pregnant, she can sure _move_!" Leia panted, bending over with both hands on her knees and breathing hard.

"She could be desperate to protect the baby," Rowen said. Alvin cursed up a storm and took his gun out, pointing the end at Fractured Holly. "I'll end this little chase once and for all!"

"You can't!" Prime Holly exclaimed, forcing the gun down with both hands. "This is a public place!"

"Doesn't matter," Alvin growled. "This world will go 'poof' soon, anyway."

Holly shook her head. "It still feels wrong."

Ludger ran in front of the two. "You two can talk about this later! She'll get away!"

They finally cornered her in a dark, dead-end alleyway. Muzet went forward.

"End of the line!" Fractured Holly lowered her head so her bangs were over her eyes and grinned.

"What's going on?!" Milla demanded, hand going to the handle of the sword on her hip.

Gaius took his katana out and went into a fighting stance. "Something doesn't feel right. Brace yourselves!" Fractured Holly's head shot up and her skin went black.

"You think you've trapped me, but I've only led you all to your deaths!" she cackled, demon arm showing. Only this time the red veins had tinges of violet in them, just like the mist covering it.

Prime Holly made her own demon hand appear. "Whoa, what the hell is going on?!"

"It's the divergence catalyst itself!" Elize exclaimed.

"It's attached to the baby, not her. So why did she transform?" Leia asked, drawing one leg back so she was at the ready with her staff.

"The baby's inside her, so she must be able to transform in its place!" Jude said. fractured holly charged at the group, claws scraping the ground. prime holly pushed herself in front of the group and brought her demonic arm down as the other brought it up for a slash, stopping it. Rowen threw his three knives, the blades flying past the Prime at the Fracture. The Fracture jumped high up and back, the knives whizzing under her.

Milla ran at the woman as she landed. "Sigil Spear!" The enemy grabbed the blade of the sword with the demon hand, drawing a little blood.

"Fireball!" She thrust her other hand out and blasted the spirit in the abdomen with the spell, sending the blonde flying back with her sword still in Fractured Holly's grip. The mage turned the sword around and threw it blade-first at the downed woman. Ludger quickly moved in front of Milla and deflected the blade down with his twin swords. At the same time, Leia ran at the Fracture and swung her staff in a sweeping motion. The catalyst jumped up right where Gaius was. He sliced the woman deeply across her gut. He moved back just as Muzet attacked. The floating spirit hurled a couple orbs of gravity at the enemy. The woman slashed both as they came at her, destroying them.

As she landed, Elize and Alvin had Linked. "Teepo Cannon!" Teepo was on the end of Alvin's gun. When he pulled the trigger, a giant beam of energy shot at the Fracture. She had the demon hand in front of her in a defense position. It blocked most of the attack, but several burns were on that arm.

"Take this!" Prime Holly shouted, running at her Fracture with her demon hand near the ground, claws out. She jumped, slashing up. Fractured Holly leaned back, the tips of the claws grazing her chin.

Jude attacked right after Holly had gone up enough. "Maxwell!" As the spirit fired four colored blasts, Fractured Holly rolled to her left, destroying one shot that came at her by slashing it.

"Damn, she's tough," Alvin said as he hoisted his broadsword over his shoulder. "I didn't know Holly could fight this hard."

Leia stepped back to avoid a slash from the catalyst. "The divergence catalyst might be boosting her abilities. Plus, she might be fighting this hard to protect her baby."

Prime Holly gained some cuts from the other's attack. "We're dealing with a real handful now. I wonder how Lancer's doing in his fight."

* * *

Where the two Servants were fighting, blood hit the ground, painting it red as it splattered. The grips on either weapon faltered slightly.

"Dammit!" Prime Lancer snarled as he coughed several times, blood flying from it to hit the ground each time. The other spear had gone through the middle of his chest, blood falling from the tip of the demonic spear poking out of his back.

"What the- -" the Fractured demigod started to say before he was cut off, head down and mouth open as blood exited it. His own blood ran down the length of the other spear, pooling at the Prime's hands before it dripped of the lance's shaft. He was stabbed where the Prime was, except he was hit a little higher.

The Prime smiled, blood trailing from the corners of his mouth. "Heh, shoulda known...this would happen..." He winced as he took a couple of steps back, freeing himself from the enemy spear and making his own come out of the Fracture. The Fracture grunted, falling to his knees and using the bloody spear to support his body. The curse was spreading over his chest. He put one blood-covered hand on the ground to push himself up, both hand still on Gae Bolg's shaft to support his wobbly body.

Though the blow didn't hit his heart and create the curse, it still came pretty close. He stumbled back, sticking the end of the spear into the ground and leaning his weight into it with one hand. His breathing was heavy. "Ya still...wanna fight..?"

Blood spread, covering most of the Fracture's front. "I won't let ya...get yer hands...on Holly..."

Prime Lancer shut his serpentine eyes. "Ya really love her, huh..?" Then he opened them. "Sorry...but I...adore her, too..."

Pain shot through Fractured Lancer from the curse. "God dammit..!" He looked at the Prime steadily. "I guess...we're lucky...to love Holly...Never let her go..." More blood flew from Fractured Lancer's mouth. He lost his grip on his spear and fell sideways. The spear vanished into blue mana before he even hit the ground. Prime Lancer watched silently as his Fracture's body dissolved into blue mana. Then he collapsed on the ground, coughing up more blood. His own spear vanished as he fell onto his back.

Lancer smirked. "Holly...it's over..."

_'Are you okay?! You're voice sounds strained!'_

"Nah...I just need to...sleep fer awhile..."

_'Sleep?! What the hell happened to you?!'_

Lancer didn't reply. He had already shut his eyes, drifting off.

* * *

Holly was on the verge of freaking out when she didn't get a telepathic reply from Lancer. Gaius used his katana to block another slash from the catalyst. Muzet flew down and used Scattered Petals, but the enemy jumped back, staining the ground crimson from her numerous wounds. Then her eyes widened.

"My Servant isn't taking any more mana from me...Is he dead?!"

Ludger switched to his chromatus and stabbed at Fractured Holly, but the woman used her demon arm to knock it away. She was seething and mist seemed to be pouring out of her demonic hand even more than before, and thicker too.

"Damn you! How dare you all do that to him!" she roared. She sped forward, slashing horizontally. Prime Holly used her own hand to try blocking, but she was thrown against a wall. She slid down it into a sitting position, blood running down the side of her head.

"You bitch!" she snarled, getting to her feet. She started to run at the Fracture, but Gaius grabbed her. "Let me go! I have to make her pay for this!"

"Just calm down for a moment!" the king told her. He held onto her, despite the latter struggling in his grip. She stopped when she saw what he meant. Ludger was sneaking up behind the Fracture. He plunged his spear though her back. It showed up again through her belly, revealing the catalyst.

The Fracture arched back and started to scream, but vanished into black flakes before it was let out. A few moments later, the world shattered.

* * *

"I have to find Lancer!" Holly exclaimed as soon as they go back, appearing near the exit to the Catamar Heights. She ripped herself from the king's grip and broke off into a full sprint for the field, demon hand shrinking so it was covered by the bandages.

"Holly! Get back here, dammit!" Jude yelled after the woman. When it was clear she wasn't coming back right away, the group sighed and ran after her.

"Lancer!" Holly first saw all of the blood, then the demigod on his back. She ran up to him, seeing he was covered in crimson and had his eyes closed. The red liquid was gushing out of a hole in his chest.

"Oh my!" Elize gasped as she and the rest of the group caught up to the Master.

"Don't just stand there! Help him!" the woman shouted. Elize and Jude immediately went to work while the mage squeezed the knight's hand, eyes shut tightly as she fought back tears. They opened when the woman felt a hand on the side of her face. She turned and saw it was Leia.

"We should take care of this," she said as white light came from her hand, using her limited healing abilities to close the wound.

Jude was still healing Lancer with Elize. "We need to get back to Trigleph right now!"

* * *

The entire way back, those two were trying to heal Lancer as much as they could.

It was night in Holly's apartment. Bandages covered her Servant's chest. Holly was sleeping next to the man, but was awake from her inability to. She caressed the right cheek of the man. His skin was sticky from it being covered in sweat. His chest moved up and down with each ragged breath.

"Lancer..." she murmured. He always seemed to be getting hurt for her sake and she was afraid he'd take it too far and get himself killed one day.

She went still, sensing sudden mana. A distinctly familiar roar split through the night air.

"Berserker's back, huh?" Holly grumbled. She glanced quickly at her Servant. He was too hurt to fight. Holly planted a kiss on his lips. Looks like she would have to handle this herself.


	10. Twelve Lives

There wasn't a single person out walking around when Holly snuck out of her apartment. Everyone was in their homes, probably asleep. The air was still and all was quiet, except for the sound of Holly's footsteps on the stone walkways. Following the feel of the mana, Holly wound up near the Trigleph exit to the Alest Highroad.

Holly jumped back just as an ax went past her, smashing the earth where she had been standing mere seconds ago.

"Berserker," the woman growled as she saw the form of the giant Servant. Berserker broke into a full sprint at the mage. Holy jumped back and her demon hand appeared. It ate a replenished ice gem and the hand was coated in that element. The giant went in front of her, heaving the giant ax over his head. He brought it down, smashing the earth. Though she stepped back, Holly still had to shield her face with both hands from the assault of the dirt. Before she could react, the Servant punched her in the gut. The woman flew back, but was able to plant both feet on the wall she hit. She sprang forward right at Hercules. She scratched his right shoulder as she flew past with her demon hand, but the claws couldn't break the skin.

The air left her as Berserker grabbed her right leg, smashing her into the ground several times before throwing her. The woman was on her hands and knees on the ground, coughing up blood. Berserker threw a boulder at her, but Holly stood up, punching forward with her demon hand curled up into a fist, shattering it. She was surprised as the giant appeared in front of her as she smashed the boulder. He brought the ax down, but Holly raised her left hand, catching the edge of the blade. Her feet dug into the ground as she was pushed to her knees from the pressure. Blood was pouring from the large gash in her demonic hand's palm from the blade as she struggled to keep it from being a fatal blow.

Her eyes widened as the ax was lifted. Right after, though, a kick to her chest was received. She skid back, rolling over the ground. So far, her clothes had numerous holes and tears in them. Pain throbbed in her chest, but she pushed it aside as she got to her feet.

Hercules ran at the mage, thrusting his ax forward. Holly jumped up, flipping down as the ax passed under her. Her left hand went on the blunt side of the massive weapon and she pushed off it to go higher. She flipped so she was upwards, right in front of the beast's face. She began slashing rapidly at it, but each time the claws hit skin, they bounced off without leaving a scratch. Hercules lifted his left and and swatted the woman to the side with the back of it, making her crash through a rock pillar.

"Damn, this is hard!" Holly spat, blood dripping from her mouth. "Nothing I do puts a scratch in this guy!"

The ice wore off on her hand and she replaced it with a blackish-purple gem as she stood up. Her hand seemed to be covered in black, fingers and claws long and tipped with red. Dark spikes appeared along the outside of the arm. She reared it back and charged at the giant, swiping his abdomen. Berserker just stood still and stared down at Holly as the woman unleashed attack after attack.

He swung his ax and Holly used the outside of her left arm to block it. The many spikes trapped the ax before it even hit skin. The mage smirked as she used it as leverage to throw herself slightly up, throwing a kick at the giant's chest. It didn't even faze the beast. Immediately after, he punched he in the gut, breaking the spikes' hold on the ax as she flew back.

She hit the ground hard and looked up, seeing Berserker in front of her through the haze of pain. The beast lifted his ax up and brought it down in a sweeping motion right at Holly.

The blade dug into her left side and she flew to the side, hitting the wall and making a series of cracks before falling to the ground flat on her belly, blood gushing from the large wound over her hip. Berserker charged at her, ax over his shoulder.

"I don't think so!"

A blue blur appeared in front of Holly as a red cursed spear was brought up horizontally over the person's head, edge of the ax grinding against the shaft. The person grunted, both feet digging into the ground.

"Lancer!" Holly exclaimed. "But how?!"

The two Servants broke apart from the pressure, both skidding back. Lancer slid behind his Master.

"Even injured, I'm a light sleeper. I opened my eyes when I felt ya leave the bed an' saw ya go out the door. An' then I felt Berserker's mana. So I put two an' two together." He glared at her. "How much of a dumbass can ya be?! Ya know ya shouldn't fight other Servants without me!"

"You were injured! I didn't want to drag you into a fight!" Holly snapped back. She had a sudden coughing fit, blood hitting the ground each time.

Lancer calmed down a little, though he was still mad. "An' what made ya think ya could take him on yer own?!" Berserker roared and Lancer bared his fangs. "Holly, give me as much mana as ya can."

"Huh?"

"I'm gonna use Gae Bolg! Better safe than sorry with more power with his skin as hard as it is!" Lancer growled. Holly closed her eyes and blue mana covered her body. She couldn't give him nearly as much as with a mana transfer, but just enough to raise the attack's grade. The mana surrounded Lancer and he jumped up when it faded. Holly staggered to her feet, the dark element wearing off and clutching her hip with her right hand, watching as red mana surrounded the demonic spear. "Gae...Bolg!"

The spear was thrown at the beast. It bored through his chest and suck into the ground on the other side. Lancer was panting, hands on his knees, as he held out his right hand, Gae Bolg moving on its own back in it. Berserker slumped to his knees then his body hit the ground face first, blood pouring out of the hole in his chest.

"You...you did it!" Holly breathed. Lancer's right arm ached from the enormous strain put on the muscles from the throw. He didn't have the stamina to put up with using his Noble Phantasm multiple times.

As Holly walked over to inspect Berserker's body, the first red flag Lancer noticed was the beast wasn't fading away. The next is when the red glow to the giant's eyes returned.

"Holly! Get back!"

At the sound of the demigod's voice, Holly turned her head. Behind her, Berserker got up and was swinging his ax. Holly turned her head sharply, but it was too late.

Blood flew through the air as metal bit into flesh. Holly hit the ground to the left side of the Servant, covered in the thick, crimson liquid. Berserker roared as the flesh knit itself back together over the hole in his chest.

"Holy shit! What the hell is going on with Berser- -Lancer!" Holly shouted. She was on her back on the ground. She was covered in blood, but it wasn't her's. The knight had taken the hit for her as he pushed her away. Blood poured from a massive wound on his right, at the middle of his abdomen. He had flown from the hit so he was flat on his chest to the right of Holly.

He tried getting to his feet and winced. The wound from his fight with his Fracture had opened after pushing his Master away from the beast's attack, staining the blue fabric of his top over his chest red, some of it joining the stains from the blood when it splattered from the new wound. Holly got up and rushed to Lancer's side as he wobbled, supporting his body with both hands.

"Man, what is up with this guy?" Lancer asked. "Only my Noble Phantasm put a scratch in him, killed him surprisingly, but he's able to come back to life?!"

"Is that really a Noble Phantasm?!" Holly agreed, staring at Berserker.

"I've never heard of a legend of Hercules of him returnin' from death," Lancer added.

"Wait...I don't know if this is it, but Hera gave him 12 labors," Holly said after thinking. "Maybe he has the same number of lives as labors!"

Lancer pulled Holly back from a swing from Berserker's ax. "So yer sayin' we hafta kill him 11 more times?! I dunno if I can take usin' Gae Bolg that many times!"

Hercules roared, swinging the arm with the ax at the two. Holly grabbed the outside of it with both hands, teeth gritting and feet digging into the ground as the slid back with the mage. She succeeded in forcing it to a halt. "Lancer! Now!"

Lancer jumped up as Holly gave him enough mana to raise its rank to A. "Gae...Bolg!" The spear, wrapped in red mana, shot at the giant. Holly was holding his arm down, so he could do nothing as the weapon bored through his chest, taking another life.

Holly jumped back as Hercules fell to the ground and started resurrecting. She looked back. The Irishman was on one knee and panting. "How are you holding up?"

"Jeez...Each time I throw it, it does a number on my arm. I can't keep doin' this fer long."

Hercules stood up, making Holly snap her head in his direction. Red covered the enemy's body and he raised the ax over his head with both arms. "Watch out, Lancer!"

She jumped to the side to avoid the shattered earth from the shockwave. Lancer jumped high up, but the Servant vanished and appeared behind the man. He flipped and kicked the spearman down, the man hitting the ground hard enough to create a crater. He struggled to get back on his feet, arms shaky, but a giant weight from the giant coming down on his back made his abdomen hit it again, blood flying from his mouth.

"Get off of him!" Holly shouted as her demon hand was covered in flames from it eating a new red gem. She sprang at the beast, swinging the arm. Hercules glanced at her before countering with his ax. Fire and sparks were flying from the clash. An explosion occured, blasting the two back.

Lancer jumped up while the beast was distracted from recovering from the blast. "Gae...Bolg!"

"Only nine lives left," Holly said as Hercules' body fell to the ground. Blood dripped from the woman's mouth. When Lancer landed, he had both hands on his knees, breathing hard.

"I'll try to hold out...nine more times..." the demigod panted. He looked up and the enemy was in front of him, swinging a punch. Lancer held his spear sideways in front of his body to block, But the fist slid past the shaft and hit the man's belly. Blood flew from his mouth and the cracking of ribs were heard as he flew back. Holly tried to catch him, but the force of his flying body made her fall down, going back a few meters.

"Ugh...How are you doing?" Holly asked as she got her Servant's body off of her.

"Seen better days," Lancer grunted. He jumped up as Holly ran at the enemy, using both hands to keep him from blocking Lancer's attack. "Gae...Bolg!"

As Hercules died for the fourth time, the woman looked back. "Are you okay?"

Lancer was having to use his spear to support his body. "Yeah...Fer the most part..." His arm was killing him from the strain he was putting on it. Hercules was getting up. Lancer jumped up just as Berserker was about to attack his Master. "Gae...Bolg!" The muscles in his arm cried out as he launched the spear, killing the beast for the fifth time. Holly jumped back away from the beast as the hole in its chest healed.

She glanced at Lancer as his spear returned to him. He couldn't hold out much longer. "Should I call the others so you can get a break?"

Lancer shook his head. "We shouldn't bother 'em with this. Besides, looks like only Noble Phantasms work on this guy. I'll keep goin' fer as long as I need to." He jumped up as the giant got up. "Gae...Bolg!"

"Halfway done at last!" Holly exclaimed as Hercules died for the sixth time. Lancer leaned on her after landing. He was panting hard, sweat covering his face. "You don't look so good!"

"Nah...This...is...nothin'." To show this, he jumped up again. "Gae...Bolg!"

He landed, his ribs and right arm screaming in pain. More blood than before was streaming from his mouth. He was too exhausted to notice Hercules had charged at him and his Master. Holly didn't notice until it was too late. The giant ax smashed into their abdomens, slicing them deeply and made them fly back. They hit the ground hard, making a cloud of dust.

Lancer appeared from it, jumping up. "Gae...Bolg!" Hercules tried to block with his ax, but the spear bent at an unnatural angle, still hitting the beast's heart. The dust cleared and Holly saw Berserker fall to the ground. Next to her, she heard a meaty thud. She turned her head and saw Lancer was on his hands and knees, head down and making sweat hit the ground.

"You can't keep pushing yourself like this!" Holly insisted. "This has to stop now!" Her red Command Seals started glowing, but Lancer hit her right hand down as she held it up.

"Don't..!" he panted. "This...is...my...own...choice..." He looked at Berserker. "Jus'...four...more...times..." Getting back to his feet, the man jumped up. "Gae...Bolg!" He landed. "Jus'...three...more..!" He forced his tired legs to jump. "Gae...Bolg!"

Holly was starting to cry. "Stop trying to kill yourself!"

"Ugh...I'm...fine..." Despite Holly's protests, he jumped up. "Gae...Bolg!"

When he landed, he was flat on his stomach. "Lancer?!" Holly rolled him over. His entire battle attire was soaked in sweat. Blood spilled from his numerous wounds. His eyes were closed tightly and he was panting hard. He was clutching his right arm tightly with his left hand.

"Only...one...life...left..." he grunted, trying to push himself up. Unbelievable pain shot through his right arm and he fell back with a moan. "Damn...my...right...arm...won't...work...right..."

Hercules got up and was charging at the two. "We need to get out of the way!" Holly exclaimed. She helped him up and jumped to the left with the man. Once they landed, Lancer's legs gave out under him and he fell, pulling his Master down with him.

"Sorry...Holly..." the Irishman panted.

Holly snapped her head around to look behind her. Berserker was charging again. "We need to move, Lancer!" Lancer took a deep breath and pushed Holly away with his left hand. "What are you- -?!"

The man stood up. Hercules' body plowed into his, pushing his into the wall. Lancer smirked.

"Too...bad...fer...ya..." He held up his spear. Hercules moved his hand up to try pushing it away, but to no avail. "Gae...Bolg!"

Hercules fell as the twelfth and final life left him. Lancer fell on top of him, hitting the ground as Berserker's body vanished into blue mana.

"What's all the commotion out here?"

Holly turned and saw a yawning Alvin. With him were the rest of the group.

Gaius crossed his arms. "Did you two fight a Servant on your own again?"

"If so, which one was it. It looks to be taken care of," Rowen said.

"It was Berserker. But nevermind that! Lancer needs help!" Holly exclaimed. Jude ran over to Lancer while Elize went to Holly.

"What happened to you?!" she demanded.

"Berserker happened," Holly told her. "He was incredibly strong and wounded both me and Lancer." She glanced over at her Servant. Jude was tending to his many wounds. "Using Gae Bolg 12 times really wore him out."

"Why 12 times?!" Milla asked, overhearing Holly.

"He had 12 lives," Holly answered.

Leia put her hands on her hips. "Why didn't you get us?!"

"Only Noble Phantasms could hurt him."

Jude was working on healing Lancer's right arm, brow furrowed. "Holly? You may wanna come over here."

"Hmm?" Holly murmured as she got up, walking over to the teen. Elize followed her, still healing the woman. "What's up?"

"What happened to Lancer to make his arm like this?!" he demanded.

"Using Gae Bolg's special ability over and over. Is something wrong?"

Jude facepalmed. "I can't believe you let him do that! He has multiple muscles tears and bone fractures throughout his right arm!"

"Can it be fixed?" Holly asked.

"Yes, but he can cause permanent damage by straining his arm like that again."

"What are you saying?"

"He can't use his Noble Phantasm again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Geez, talk about the longest battle scene I've ever written! It lasted most of the chapter!


	11. A Dark Reflecion

The next day, Holly woke up in Jude's room. She, despite having injuries, was able to take care of Lancer if she didn't push herself. The men helped move Lancer into Holly's room, where she was raking care of him for the next day. His right arm was in a sling and he was covered in bandages. He was running a temperature, so Holly took it upon herself to place damp rags on his forehead and replace them when needed.

On that day, his red eyes slowly opened. Holly was next to him while he lay in her bed. He glanced down at his injuries. "What happened?"

"Don't you remember? Berserker did this," Holly replied.

"I don't remember him breakin' my arm."

Holly's expression went grim. "He didn't do that. Using Gae Bolg over and over did that."

"It was worth it to finally take him down."

"You don't know what the aftermath of pulling that stupid stunt is."

"Stupid?! It was to save yer hide!"

Holly sighed. "You can't use your Noble Phantasm again." Lancer went silent, eyes wide, as Holly continued. "The strain you put on your right arm made the muscles tear themselves apart and the bones to fracture. Using it again can cause permanent damage and render that arm useless."

"So...I can't use Gae Bolg ever again..?" the spearman murmured.

"Not for as long as I've summoned you. And you can still use the spear, just not its special ability."

"Damn, this really hinders my ability to protect ya," Lancer chuckled humorlessly.

Holly shook her head. "You don't need to keep risking your life for me. I can take care of protecting myself."

Lancer gave her a long look. "Holly, I'm yer Servant. It's my duty to protect ya."

Holly pulled him into a tight hug. "We're partners, not Master and Servant. By the way, could you use your Noble Phantasm with your left hand?"

"Sorry. I may be ambidextrous, but I can only use it with my right hand."

"I see..." Holly murmured. "Hopefully we won't run into another enemy like Berserker."

"Even without my Noble Phantasm, I can still fight just as well."

* * *

The group was in Ludger's room. Muzet was able to pick up Lancer talking while she was on the 2nd floor.

"I wonder how Holly will be able to break the news to Lancer," Leia said.

"What I wanna know is how he'll take it," Alvin replied. "Losing his trump card can't be easy for him."

"The broken arm has to hurt his chances in battle," Milla added. "We may need to provide him with support more often."

"Given a Servant's healing, he should be back to fighting like he used to in a couple weeks," Jude said. "He's able to fight with his left hand as well, so he'll have to fight using that while his right arm is healing."

Gaius crossed his arms. "I have a feeling he won't be too broken up over the loss of his Noble Phantasm. He isn't overly reliant on it. Now if he couldn't use his spear period, their may be more of a reaction coming from him."

"But that was still pretty stupid, taking on a Servant on their own," Ludger said.

"Apparently, only Noble Phantasms would work on him," Elize pointed out.

"The still could have had us to heal them!" Leia told her.

"Besides that, we have Archer to worry about, as well as two other Servants," Muzet said.

* * *

The next day, the group was eating at Ludger's, plus Holly and Lancer, when the man got a call. He opened his phone and sighed. It was Vera, probably calling about another Fractured Dimension.

"DODA here. We've detected a new Fractured Dimension. None of the target Servants were picked up. The rift is here, in Trigleph. Please be extra careful with this one."

"Why? What's wrong?" Ludger asked.

"This dimension...has a strange feel coming from it. We don't know what it is, but I advise you to be cautious in it."

"That was Vera with a new Fractured Dimension, wasn't it?" Milla asked. "What's the problem you asked about?"

"Apparently, there's something off about this Fractured Dimension," Ludger answered.

Leia cocked her head. "Do they know what it is?"

Ludger shook his head. "No, which is why we need to be careful with this one."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The coordinates had the rift at the park right outside the apartment buildings. After Ludger made the rift appear, the group went in it. It took them to the exit to the Alest Highroad.

An old man went past the group during his walk. "I wouldn't go into the Alest Highroad if I were you. A werewolf lives there."

"A what?" Holly asked.

Milla put a hand to her chin. "What makes you say that?"

"You people must be from out of town. There isn't a person here that doesn't know about the 'Alest Monster'."

"What's the story on the 'Alest Monster'?" Rowen asked.

"About a year ago, the werewolf murdered a girl that was apparently its girlfriend. Not a lot is known about why this happened, but apparently it went mad and killed her. Since then, its lived in a cave in the Alest Highroad."

"Has anyone ever seen this werewolf?" Gaius asked.

"Men were sent out several times to slay the beast, but none of them have ever been heard from again. If you all value your lives, you shouldn't go into the Alest Highroad."

The old man left and Alvin crossed his arms. "I think we've found our divergence catalyst. I've never heard of this 'Alest Monster' before."

Elize looked worried. "Do you think it's safe to go looking for it?"

Lancer put his left hand to his chin. "Do you think that's the reason fer the weird feeling Vera spoke of?"

Jude looked at him. "It can't be. We've dealt with this before and nothing was odd about its aura."

Gaius crossed his arms. "Maybe there's something off about this 'Alest Monster'."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The group went to the section from the Trigleph area to the Duval. To their left was the yawning mouth of a cave.

"This must be it," Lancer said. "There's an aura comin' from here that doesn't feel right."

Elize twiddled her thumbs. "So the weird reading Vera picked up IS the divergence catalyst."

"I wonder what this werewolf is," Holly said. Lancer wrapped his left arm over her shoulders, grinning.

"No matter what it is, I'll keep ya safe."

Muzet shuddered. "The aura emitting from the cave feels ghastly!"

Milla put a hand to her chin. "It feels evil."

Ludger gulped. "I guess we need to prepare ourselves for whatever we find in there."

* * *

The inside of the cave felt cool with light coming from several glowing crystals and rocks. Water was dripping from the numerous stalactites. The air stank of dog when the group was far enough in.

Alvin held his nose. "I think we're close to the werewolf."

Holly sniffed the air several times. "Why does this smell familiar?"

Rowen chuckled. "It's the same as Lancer's scent."

"Are ya tryin' to say I'm like a dog?!" Lancer snarled.

Gaius grabbed his katana. "Something's coming!"

Near the hole leading further into the cave, a figure came into the cavern the group was at. It was a man with a black visor over his eyes, blue, black, and white fur mantle over his shoulders, blue hair...Wait a minute.

"Holy shit, he looks a lot like you, Lancer!" Holly exclaimed. It was true. Other than those things, he looked like Lancer. At the end of the stranger's ponytail was red. He wore a bodysuit like Lancer, except his was black, just like the one visible shoulder plate.

"Lancer's the werewolf?!" Leia demanded.

"I've heard of Alternate Servants," Lancer said. "I wonder if this is one of 'em."

"What's an Alternate Servant?!" Ludger asked.

"It's a Servant corrupted by the Grail mud. Their personality changes greatly along with their power."

"Then was that murdered girl Holly?" Elize asked.

Lancer growled. "It's hard to believe I would do that, but since this is an Alter, I'm not surprised."

"Wait! Without a Master, shouldn't it have already disappeared?!" Muzet demanded.

"No, since Alters don't need Masters."

Holly looked down. "Either way, we'll be fighting you."

Ludger looked at the Alter Servant. A purple-black glow came from it. "We'll have to fight it anyway, since it's the catalyst."

Lancer and Alter Lancer each materialized Gae Bolg. "Holly, everyone, stay outta this."

"I can see why Holly should stay out of this, but why us?!" Alvin asked.

Lancer bared his fangs. "'Cause this bastard hurt Holly!" He and the Alter ran at each other, spear shafts grinding against one another.

Jude ran forward. "Wait!"

Milla held out one hand to stop him. "We shouldn't interfere. This is personal for Lancer."

"I know, but how well can he do with wielding a spear in just one hand?!"

"If things are going badly for him, we'll step in."

The two Servants were swinging and blocking each other's spears. Lancer slid back while his Alter was overpowering him. The man jumped up, swinging the lance down. The other smirked and held his up horizontally so the shafts collided. The Alter pushed it away and kicked Holly's Servant in the gut. Lancer went back, but was able to regain his footing. At that instant, the Alter went at him, thrusting his red spear forward. The other held his spear to the side, making the tip aim for his left.

Lancer grit his teeth, trying to resist the pressure of the Alter pushing the spear back. The demigod threw out a kick, knocking back the Alter. He ran at the enemy, rapidly stabbing while the other used the tip of his to block and knock it away. One that he knocked away hit the right edge of his visor, a crack forming. The two broke away and stood still as a piece of the visor fell off, revealing one pale yellow eye. The eyes narrowed into a slit and the Alter growled. It smiled darkly and chuckled.

"Uh, what's happening?" Leia asked. The skin of the Alter turned white as his body grew. Blue fur covered his bare wrists, back, and face. The mantle grew around his neck, the ponytail coming out the back of it. The black visor with a crack rested over a long muzzle. The demonic spear was gripped tightly in its right, clawed hand. The werewolf towering before Lancer threw its head back and howled.

"Oh shit..." Holly breathed. The werewolf threw a punch at the spearman. Lancer jumped out of the way as the fist hit the ground, a multitude of cracks forming over it. The beast snarled and swung its large head over at the man, one visible yellow eye gleaming.

The monster charged and Lancer swung Gae Bolg. The werewolf used his to knock it to the side before grabbing Lancer's throat, hoisting the man clawed at the giant hand gripping his neck and cutting off his air. A fireball flew at the beast's hand, making him drop the knight, the warrior coughing hard and gasping for air.

The red rings around Holly vanished. "No matter who you are, I won't forgive you for trying to kill Lancer!"

"Holly! Don't draw his attention to you!" Lancer shouted the best he could after the werewolf almost choked him to death. The beast snarled, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth before dashing at the mage.

Holly sprang forward, demon hand showing itself. She slashed at the monster, but it caught her wrist. It smirked and threw her into the wall opposite of the group. She fell off it, landing on all fours as the Alter lumbered over to her.

As soon as the werewolf was right in front of her, her Servant appeared in front of her. She didn't see it at fist, but his left hand was gripping his spear, the tip in the monster's abdomen. Lancer yanked it free and grabbed his Master, jumping to the side with her as a white fist smashed into the wall that was behind them, the force of it making the stalactites tremble.

Lancer set the woman down, his back facing the wolf. "Ya all right, Holly?"

"Yeah, I'm- -Lancer! Behind you!"

Lancer's head shot up. He started turning his head to look behind him, but something smacked into him, sending him crashing into a wall. The Alter had ran up behind the man and swatted him to the side. It glanced down at Holly staring up at it with frightened eyes.

"Demon Fang!" The attacks of both Gaius and Alvin smashed into the beast, making it skid to the side a little.

"I thought I said to stay outta this!" Lancer shouted after freeing himself from the wall. The Alter was hunched over, shaking out its head. More of the black visor crumbled off, revealing the entire serpentine eye.

"Dread Wings!" Elize shouted. The wolf used the red spear to block the spell. In that instant, Leia rushed at it.

"Soulstoke Spin!" The monster defended itself before punching her away.

Holly was holding Lancer up as he glared at the group. "What are ya doin'?!"

"Helping you out!" Jude replied as he fired off a Demon Fist.

Lancer growled. "Screw yer help!"

"Why are you being like this?!" Milla demanded as she kept the werewolf back with Sylph. Rowen followed it up with Shimmering Toll. Ludger and Muzet Linked and used Link Cannon.

Lancer bared his fangs. "This is somethin' I need to do on my own."

"We let you try fighting on your own, and you were getting beaten!" Teepo pointed out after using Teepo Spray.

Lancer narrowed his red eyes. "I won't stand fer a version of me ruinin' my reputation. I hafta put this guy down myself."

Gaius stared at the Servant for awhile. "...Are you sure you'll be fine?"

Lancer grinned. "Yeah." He tightened his grip on Gae Bolg and ran at the werewolf. It turned its head, seeing the demigod ready to thrust his spear into the Alter.

It grabbed the spear and thrust his forward. Lancer ducked and kicked, his foot hitting the beast in the gut. That forced it to skid back and free Lancer's Gae Bolg. As he went at the wolf again, he ducked as one hand went over his head, grabbing empty air. The man slammed the end into the werewolf's chin, making the head be flung back. At that time, it swung its spear in a sweeping motion, the tip biting into the man's shoulder, causing blood to splash out as the warrior jumped back.

"Lancer! I'll heal you!" Jude exclaimed.

Holly had gone over to the rest of the group. She held out one hand to stop Jude from running over to the knight. "You shouldn't."

"But Lancer got cut deeply!" Jude protested. "With his previous injuries, he's too weak to handle more!"

Holly shook her head. "Any damage done by Gae Bolg can't be healed for as long as that spear exists. Only after the Alter disappears can the wound be healed. Besides, Lancer's tough. It'll take a lot more than what he's putting up with to take him down."

Jude stepped back as Lancer charged at the werewolf. It swung its Gae Bolg at the man's legs, but the knight jumped up, kicking the beast in the face. The monster dropped his spear and grabbed Lancer's leg, throwing him back. Lance righted himself and landed on his feet, a smirk on his face.

The beast howled as it grabbed its face in pain with both hands. The rest of the visor was cracked and broke off, allowing the werewolf to glare at the Servant with both yellow eyes. It picked its spear up again and roared. The two vanished and reappeared, their spears grinding against one another.

The Alter knocked the other's up. With its free hand, it punched Holly's Servant in to gut, sending him crashing into a wall. Before Lancer could fall off it, the wolf appeared in front of the knight, punching him further into the wall.

It suddenly yowled and ripped out its bleeding hand. Lancer appeared from the hole, blood trailing out of the corners of his mouth, and holding his spear tipped with blood. He had stabbed the monster's hand when it punched him deeper into the wall.

The werewolf growled and slashed at the man with one hand. Lancer jumped to the side, the wolf's claws scoring the wall. He jumped at the Alter, swinging his spear. The enemy ducked as the edge went at its neck. It thrust its spear up, the tip going through Lancer's left arm and holding him. The man struggled to free himself and the beast grinned. It scored Lancer diagonally, from his left shoulder to his right hip, with his black claws.

"Lancer!" Holly cried out, seeing blood rapidly drip from the man as he dropped Gae Bolg. "Cut it out!" She was casting a spell. "Freeze Lancer!" The spears of ice gouged the werewolf, making him fly back, dropping his lance and blood splattering all over. The Irishman, unable to use his right hand, waited for his Master to pull the spear out. Lancer grit his teeth as the spear came free, the ground being painted crimson.

"I'm...all right," he grunted as he got up, his own spear returning to his hand as he held it out. The other spear returned to the wolf's hands as it started getting back up. Wasting no time, Lancer dashed at the beast and jumped up, plunging the tip into its head. The demigod opened his mouth and blood flew out.

"Oh my!" Muzet gasped, covering her mouth with both hands.

"...Oh shit..." was all Alvin said.

The Alter fell over, limp, and reverted to normal. Lancer was frozen, red blossoming over his chest.

"No..." Holly whispered as her Servant fell to the ground in a forming sea of red.

Milla took a step back in shock. "Did that really just happen to him?!"

Teepo's voice sounded strained. "I think I'm gonna be sick..." Elize covered her eyes with both hands.

Leia held her staff close to her chest. "I can't believe that happened..."

Gaius growled. "I knew we shouldn't have left this battle to him!"

Holly's eyes were wide and brimming with tear. The Alter's spear went through Lancer's chest, piercing his heart and making the curse appear as the spear destroyed it.

"LANCER!"


	12. Teetering on the Edge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It looks like I'll be updating this every 2-4 days. I had how this story will end and all the twists before I even started this. I'll aim for 25 chapters.

Holly ran over to Lancer. She had one hand on his shoulder. He was on his right side and surrounded in blood, so much that Holly struggled to keep from throwing up the contents of her stomach.

"Holly..." Elize murmured. The woman snapped her head behind her to look at Ludger, eyes wild.

"Hurry up and destroy this dimension, dammit!"

Ludger looked startled then changed into his chromatus, stabbing the Alter and removing the divergence catalyst. The body and the spear through Lancer vanished.

"Holly, what are you..?" Jude asked. Holly felt the rise of his shoulders with each ragged, shallow breath. His entire torso was covered in the black lines of the curse, along with a little on his limbs and neck.

"He's still alive! I need to heal him before his spiritual core collapses!" the mage shouted, hysteric.

"How are you going to heal him?" Alvin asked her. "You don't use healing artes."

The dimension shattered. Jude took a step forward. "Should I help?"

"Please go back to Trigleph without me. I'm going to perform a mana transfer on him."

Lancer looked over at his Master. Thanks to Battle Continuation, he was still conscious and his body was still materialized. With each word he spoke, blood bubbled from his mouth. "Ya shouldn't...give up...more of yer...magic circuits..."

"What does he mean?" Muzet asked while putting a hand to her chin.

Lancer chuckled then let out a wet cough. "Why...do ya...think she...hasn't...been usin'...some of...her spells..?"

Milla crossed her arms. "I can't say I've taken much notice."

"It's 'cause...she can't anymore..."

"Why can't she?" Rowen asked.

"Lancer, just save your strength and don't talk anymore," Holly suddenly said.

Gaius looked at Holly. "Are you trying to change the subject because you don't want us to find out?"

Holly grit her teeth. "No, but you guys really need to leave while I do this!"

Ludger walked over to Holly. "Uh, is there a reason for this?"

Holly stood up and whispered hurriedly in his ear what a mana transfer involves her doing. Ludger's eyes widened and he blushed. Holly pulled back. "Send me a text when you guys are out so I know it's safe to start."

Ludger spun around, facing the others. "Guys! Hurry up and get outta here!"

Alvin narrowed his eyes. "...What for..?"

Holly was at the end of her rope. "Leave _NOW_!"

The others jumped, but decided against asking her anymore questions and ran for the exit of the cave. None of them felt like dying. A few moments later, Holly got a text from Ludger that everyone was out of the cave. They _really_ hauled ass.

Lancer stared at the woman as she removed her pants. During a mana transfer, she'll also be giving up some of her magic circuits, making her unable to cast some spells. She had already lost the ability to cast Dark Visitor and Ground Dasher. Repairing a spiritual core will cost a few more.

"Holly...ya shouldn't...give up...more of yer...spells..."

"I'm willing to give up anything for your sake," she replied. She went over Lancer. "Let's begin."

* * *

In Trigleph, the group was in Ludger's room.

"I can't believe that happened to Lancer..." Leia murmured.

Milla nodded in agreement. "Hopefully she'll be able to reverse it."

"I wonder how a mana transfer will save Lancer's life?" Elize asked, putting a hand to her chin. "After all, his heart was hit."

Gaius looked down at the floor, narrowing his eyes. "...I have a feeling it forces her to give up some of her spirit artes."

"Why do you say that?" Leia asked.

"After 'mana transfer' was mentioned, Lancer said Holly was unable to cast some spells and she shut him up."

Milla glanced at the king. "So you're saying she loses some of her ability to cast each time she performs a mana transfer?"

"If something like that had no risks, she would use it more often to heal Lancer. My guess is that he adds those magic circuits to the ones he already has."

"So she'll eventually lose the ability to cast altogether?" Ludger asked.

"If she keeps doing mana transfers, then yes."

"...She must really love him to be willing to give that up," Leia murmured.

Alvin crossed his arms. "Those gems allow her to get a feel for how spyrix work. If the worst happens, Ludger and I can teach her how to use them for spirit artes."

Jude looked at the merchant. "Hopefully that won't happen to her. Even if it does, I have a theory to get spyrites working. She could use one of those to cast without killing spirits."

"Sounds like we have a plan worked out if she loses all her magic circuits," Ludger said.

* * *

The mana transfer was a success. As Lancer got up, he noted just how much of him she healed. His previous injuries and the one from the battle they just had were gone. He realized there was less pain in his right arm and he was able to move it just like before. It was still sore, though. Holly was on the ground, out cold from all the mana she used. Lancer sighed and picked her up bridal style after getting her pants back on.

"Jeez, I can't believe how many magic circuits ya gave up..."

To heal all those injuries, she probably used almost half of her magic circuits. She could probably only heal just his core two or three more times. With a heavy sigh, he switched to his modern clothes and carried her into town. As he went into Holly's apartment room, Holly began to stir. Then she felt the pair of strong arms holding her.

She opened her red eyes slowly. "I'm glad you're alive, Lancer..." She snuggled close to him.

Lancer quickly glanced at her. "Ya shouldn't have sacrificed that many magic circuits fer my sake."

Holly blinked up at him. "It was to save your life. If I didn't, you would have vanished."

"Ya only had to repair my core. Ya didn't need to heal all of my injuries."

"I needed to in order to get you fighting at your best," Holly said as Lancer set her on her bed. "You still aren't able to use your Noble Phantasm- -I couldn't heal your right arm that much- -but you can now use your spear with both hands."

Lancer sat next to her in the bed. "But yer at less power now."

Holly wrapped her arms around him. "It's worth it to keep you around."

Lancer returned the hug. "Hopefully, I won't need any more. I don't need ya to lose yer ability to cast spells."

Holly nuzzled him. "I thought I had lost you..."

"Sorry fer worryin' ya. What spells can't ya use now?"

"I don't know yet. I guess I'll find out when I try casting them."

* * *

The next morning, Holly was in the hall knocking on Ludger's apartment door. Lancer was at her side and in modern clothes. The door slid open and Ludger was in the doorway, yawning and rubbing one eye. He was still in his pajamas and his hair was a mess like he'd just gotten out of bed.

"I didn't call you here for any meeting. What do you want?" he yawned. Rollo trotted up next to him, stretching his back and letting out a loud yawn.

Holly scratched the back of her head sheepishly. "Sorry for waking you. I just needed you to grant us permission to use Spirius' underground training room."

Ludger stopped rubbing his eye. "What for? Is it to prepare for other Servant fights?"

Holly shook her head. "No, Lancer's a skilled warrior. It just depends on how we choose to utilize his skills in battle."

"Then why are you here?"

"We just need it so I can see what spells I can and can't use. The last mana transfer made me lose half of my remaining magic circuits."

"Just wait here for a moment." The door slid shut. A few minutes later it opened. Ludger came out wearing his normal clothes and his hair was combed. "Let's go."

In the Spirius building, Vera was already at the front desk, even though it was just after six.

"Vice President Kresnik," she greeted. "What can I do for you today?"

"These two need to use the underground training room," Ludger replied.

Vera looked over at Holly and Lancer. "If you don't mind my asking, why do they need to use it?"

"It relates to Holly's use of magic."

"I see. Very well, you two may use the training room."

"Great! Where is it?" Holly asked.

"Just use the elevator to the far right and go to 10BF. You'll be taken to another room. At the end, in the middle, is another elevator. That will take you straight to the entrance to the training room. The door to your right will take you into it. I only ask that you don't cause a major disturbance because of the sounds from your spells."

"Thanks for the directions! I'll try to keep the noise down, but some of my spells are pretty loud."

Lancer smirked. "It'll only be a problem if ya can still cast 'em."

Vera blinked a few times. "Is something wrong with your casting, Holly?"

Holly's eyes went wide and she began sweating. "Of course not!" She turned to Lancer. "Shut up!"

Holly, followed closely by Lancer, went into the far right elevator. There was only on floor button on it.

"Well, this makes it easy," Holly commented as she pushed the button. It lit up and the doors behind the Master and Servant closed. After a couple of moments, there was a ding and the doors slid open, exposing a different room to the two.

"Now what?" Lancer asked, looking around the room as the two stepped out of the elevator. The doors slid shut.

Holly put a hand to her chin, thinking. "According to Vera, there's another elevator we have to take."

It wasn't that hard to find, since it was the only other elevator in the empty room. Going inside it, Holly pushed the button for it to take them further down, into the underground training room. The two stepped into what looked like a maintenance shaft.

Lancer put his hands in his pockets. "I was expectin' this to be as fancy as the rest of the building."

"Maybe they didn't want to spend a ton of money on a place few visitors go into," Holly replied.

There was only one door in the room, to the right. It looked to be covered in rust. It opened and the two stepped onto a small platform overlooking a large room. On the back wall was a closed gate.

Holly looked around. "This must be the place." The woman and the demigod went down some stairs to their right, taking them down to the wide area below.

Lancer glanced at Holly. "I guess ya should see what spells ya can still use."

Holly nodded and walked to the center of the room, Lancer taking a couple steps back until he could lean back against the wall. Holly took a deep breath.

"Okay, first is Freeze Lancer." Three white rings, one in the middle and two smaller ones above and below it, surrounded and circled her. Each had a three hexagons on them in a few seconds. Holly closed her eyes and began reciting the incantation. She opened them sharply when she was done. "Freeze Lancer!"

The spears of ice shot out of a giant spinning magic circle that appeared in front of Holly. Lancer jumped a little as the ice hit the wall in front of Holly, loud thuds resounding.

"It looks like ya definitely can still use that," Lancer said as he trying to calm his own breathing down. The noise startled him, making his heart race.

Holly put a hand to her chin. "I wonder how much these walls can take..."

Lancer let out a heavy breath. "Well anyway, make sure to warn me before yer spell hits the wall so I don't almost shit my pants."

Holly waved absently. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, Tidal Wave is next."

She closed her eyes and began to concentrate. But the blue spinning rings didn't surround her.

"Nothing's happening!" she said as she turned her head behind her to look at Lancer.

"Looks like that's one of the spells ya lost the ability to use." He put a hand to his chin. "I've never seen ya use it durin' this war, so I didn't know ya could before."

Holly stuck out her lower lip like she was pouting. "I kinda liked that spell. I can't believe I can't use it ever again!"

Lancer scratched the back of his head. "Even without it, yer pretty strong. Anyway, next spell."

* * *

Vera tapped the edge of a pile of papers on the desk in order to straighten them. She looked up when she heard the doors open. Nova walked through it and winked, waving to the other woman.

"How're ya doing, sis?" she asked enthusiastically. Vera sighed.

"Please keep your voice down in here, Nova. Anyway, what are you doing here?"

"My shift's over. Thought I'd check in on you!"

Vera looked at the clock. It was half past 12. The time sure seemed to be flying by today.

She turned back to her twin sister. "I appreciate the thought, Nova, but I have work to do."

Nova pouted and crossed her arms. "Aww, you're no fun, Vera."

Vera sighed. "You can stay here if you want, but make sure to keep your voice down."

"Got it!" Nova said. She made the zipping motion over her closed lips and gave Vera the thumbs-up, winking. Vera let out a long sigh. The two suddenly jumped when they heard a faint bang.

Vera facepalmed. "Oh brother..."

Nova was looking around wildly. "What was that?!"

"I thought I told them to keep it down..." Vera grumbled. She lowered her hand, looking at her sister. "It's just Holly's calculatrics. Nothing to concern yourself with."

"Holly's here?! Why?!" Nova demanded.

Vera put a finger against her own lips. "Quiet, Nova!"

Nova quickly covered her mouth with both hands, looking embarrassed. "Oops! Sorry 'bout that!"

Vera sighed. "Ludger came in here asking for permission for Holly to use the underground training room. Lancer accompanied her."

Nova cocked her head. "Why did Holly need to use it?"

Vera shook her head. "I didn't get any details. All I know is that it has something to do with Holly's spells." A beeping sound came from the computer at the desk.

"What's that for?" Nova asked.

"It's the DODA computer for detecting Fractured Dimensions."

"So there's a new one?"

Vera's brow furrowed as she read the information on the screen. "Hmm, this one is odd."

"How so?"

"There are too many deaths happening for it to be able to pick up the target Servants."

Nova covered her mouth. "Oh my! Several people are dying at once in this one?!"

"Yes, but the odd thing is that these deaths are only happening in Elympios."

"What does that mean?!"

"I don't know. But these deaths need to be stopped or the miasma will overflow from Canaan."

* * *

Holly was panting because of all the mana she had used up during her spells. She was able to use Freeze Lancer, Fireball, Crimson Flare, Splash, Wind Blade, Tempest, Demon's Lance, Bloody Howling, Force Field, Holy Rain and Ivy Rush. There were quite a few she can't use anymore, such as Thunder Blade and several she hadn't used during the war.

The loudest bang had been from Crimson Flare. Lancer thought he was going to go deaf from how loud it was. Hopefully it didn't cause a disturbance where Vera was.

After the smoke cleared from Fireball, Lancer went over to Holly and wrapped one arm around her shoulder. "We should get back. Vera's waitin'."

Once the elevator taking the two to the lobby dinged and the doors opened, Holly and Lancer were surprised to see Nova.

"Hey guys!" she greeted as the two got off the elevator and waved.

"I thought I said not to make a racket!" Vera shouted as Holly and Lancer went over to the front desk.

Lancer scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Ya could hear that? Sorry."

Vera sighed. "Whatever. Anyway, we have a situation on our hands."

"What about?" Holly asked.

"There have been several Elympion deaths in a Fractured Dimension," Nova replied.

Holly glanced at Vera. "Anything else?"

"No, and these deaths are interfering with our ability to pick up the target Servants in that dimension."

Holly looked at Lancer. The spearman had one hand on his chin. "Do you think a Servant is responsible?" the Master asked.

"Well, Servants can leech mana from Rieze Maxians. Since Elympions don't produce mana an' are in this war, a Servant will drain their souls instead."

"So you're saying Saber, Caster, or Archer's there."

"Don't forget the Alters, though they wouldn't need souls."

Vera looked at Holly and Lancer. "Whatever the case, you two and the rest of the group will have a job to do."


	13. Mysterious Deaths

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the next three days after posting the last chapter, I was SICK. I spent Friday and the whole weekend sleeping all day. On Sunday, I even threw up.

Holly and Lancer rushed over to the apartments in Trigleph. They went into the elevator and took it to the third floor. They went to the last room in the hallway and knocked on it since it was locked. A few moments later, the door slid open. As Ludger stepped out into the doorway, the room behind him smelled of mabo curry.

"Ya just had lunch?" Lancer asked.

Ludger nodded. "Yeah."

Holly's stomach rumbled. "I'm hungry..."

Lancer laughed. "We'll eat later. First, we need to tell Ludger somethin'."

"About the new Fractured Dimension, right?" Ludger guessed.

Holly stared at him. "How did you know?"

"Vera called me a bit ago. I informed everyone else just before you two got here. I told them we're all meeting here."

A couple of minutes later, everyone else in the group shuffled into the room.

Alvin had his arms lazily behind his head. "So what Fractured Dimension are we faced with this time?"

"Hopefully one with no Alters!" Leia added.

Muzet put a hand to her chin. "'Have any of the target Servants been picked up?" _'If so, I'll beat it into next week!'_

Ludger shook his head. "We don't know. The computer is too overloaded with information to pick up any."

"Why?" Jude asked. "What about this one is interfering with the scan?"

"Apparently, a bunch of Elympion deaths are the reason."

Gaius crossed his arms. "Any hints on what may be the cause?"

"Nothing."

Lancer took a step forward. "Chances are good it's 'cause of a Servant."

Milla looked at him. "Why do you say that?"

"Servants are dependent on mana. The more we take in, the stronger we can become. If a human doesn't produce mana, we eat their souls instead."

"And since Elympions don't produce mana, they're dying off instead of Rieze Maxians!" Elize exclaimed.

Alvin glanced at Lancer. "So, which one would you say it is?"

"I don't know. It could be any of the three."

Leia pumped her fists into the air. "We'll just have to go into the Fractured Dimension and find out!"

Gaius looked at Holly. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"I mean that you aren't feeling unwell because of your loss of magic circuits?"

"No. I mean, there are some spells I can't cast anymore, but I'm doing fine."

"Good. We need everyone to be strong enough if we're to face a Servant."

Rowen looked over at Ludger. "By the way, where is the rift?"

Ludger caught eyes with Holly and looked apologetic.

Holly's jaw dropped. "Not in Rieze Maxia?!"

"Yeah...in Sharilton..."

She facepalmed. "For all the effort to get there, the Servant had _better_ be weak!"

* * *

When the group arrived in Sharilton, Holly cried out in relief. Ludger gave an awkward chuckle as he made the rift appear. The group entered it, appearing right in front of the Sapstrath Highroad exit, facing it.

"Is the divergence catalyst here?" Elize asked as she and Teepo looked around. "Nothing looks out of the ordinary..."

Rowen stroked his beard. "Maybe the people here can tell us something."

They went up the the antiques shopkeeper. Ludger stepped forward. "Hey, have you heard anything about sudden Elympion deaths?"

"Yeah, I have. People say they're all happening of the Elympios side of Marksburg."

Milla crossed her arms. "Marksburg, huh? Anything else?"

"Not much, except that people from Rieze Maxia are feeling unwell there."

"That can be expected from people having their mana drained," Lancer said as the group walked away.

"So we're off to Aladhi Seahaven to take a ship?" Holly asked.

"Looks like it," Leia told her.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Soon after the group go off the ship in Marksburg did they start to feel funny.

Elize fell back and was caught by a sick-looking Alvin. "Ugh, my head hurts..."

Jude staggered. "I feel faint..."

Leia used her staff for support. "Why don't I feel well all of a sudden?" She looked over at the king. "How are you holding up, Gaius?"

The man had one had on his forehead. "I'm starting to get a headache..."

"Is it directly affecting our mana lobes?" Rowen asked. Even the two spirits weren't looking so well. The only spirit that did was Lancer.

Ludger sat down. "I feel sick..."

Lancer glanced at Holly. "How are ya doin'?"

Holly didn't look any better than the others. "Ugh, I feel like I need to lie down. Are we in a bounded field?"

"Yeah. That's probably why I'm not affected. This type doesn't drain Servants."

Alvin was going all over. "So, this is draining our mana."

"Well, you an' Ludger's souls," Lancer replied. "I don't know if ya guys should stay here."

"It doesn't matter. We'll still fight," Milla said.

"Well yeah. Rieze Maxians will be fine. Just keep producin' mana in yer bodies."

The Rieze Maxians did that. Soon, they looked back to normal.

"Why didn't you tell us sooner?!" Leia demanded. Lancer laughed and scratched the back of his head.

"I thought ya already knew that!"

"Of course we didn't!" the reporter shouted.

"What 'bout us?" Alvin asked. He and Ludger still looked sickly.

"I dunno," Lancer replied.

Milla put a hand to her chin. "Maybe they should take a ship back to Aladhi Seahaven, outside of the bounded field?"

"No way. We're not missing this!" Alvin protested.

"That's the only way you two will feel better," Jude said. "We'll take care of anything we find here and text you guys if we find the divergence catalyst."

Alvin and Ludger stared at him for a moment before nodding. They turned around and got a ticket onto the ship leaving for Aladhi Seahaven, which was about to leave anyway. Once the ship had drifted out of sight, the group made their way to the massive bridge connecting the two worlds. They went by other people, who looked sickly as well.

"We need to put a stop to this right now!" Holly said.

Jude looked around. "I still don't see the thing that's causing this."

Lancer stopped. "I'm sure whatever it is will show their face soon!" he shouted, seemingly at someone.

Violet butterflies appeared and clustered together. A floating, hooded woman appeared. The cloak that was on her was black-purple. Light blue hair was showing in the hood. She had pale skin and violet lipstick on just her bottom lip. Like Muzet, she levitated off the ground.

Lancer growled. "So yer Caster?"

"Eliminate this bounded field right now!" Holly shouted.

The woman chuckled. "Where would be the fun in that?"

Holly's eyes darted all over. Too many people. Since this was a Fractured Dimension, it wouldn't matter if there were witnesses, but they could be caught up in the battle.

Milla and Muzet noticed this. "We'll take care of it," Milla said. She and Muzet began herding people into the inn.

Lancer took out Gae Bolg and went into a fighting stance. "Why are ya drainin' people?!"

Caster grinned. "Why, to get more power of course!"

Leia took out her staff. "This is a pretty messed-up way to go about it!"

Lancer looked at the Servant for a few moments. "...The plan fer usin' the Servant's mana to summon the Grail was yer idea I take it?"

Holly glanced at him. "It was her's?!"

"How'd you figure it out?" Caster asked.

"Of all the Servants, only a Caster could come up with this solution," Lancer replied.

"So this whole mess is her fault?!" Jude growled.

"Only a cowardly witch would use methods like this," Gaius added. Caster grit her teeth and bit her lower lip.

"...You just chose to call me a witch..!"

Lancer grinned. "What's wrong with statin' the truth?"

Several circles of dust formed and bone warriors rose up, all brandishing swords.

Lancer snarled. "Familiars, huh?"

"I'll grants death to anyone who calls me a witch!" the woman shouted. She held both arms to the side, a staff appearing in the right one. The cape fanned out so it looked like a pair of bat wings. A rainbow-colored pattern appeared on them.

The bone soldiers sprang at the group. Gaius cut up three with his katana. Elize fired a ball of magic and Rowen threw a dagger, destroying the two that went at them. Leia held her staff up, making a bone sword grind against it. She was relieved of the weight when the golem shattered from Jude's punch. Holly jumped up as a sword was swept at her feet. The bandages seemed to explode as the demon hand appeared. She slashed down, cutting the familiar in two. More of them just rose up.

Caster grinned. "How do you like my loyal Dragon Tooth Warriors?"

"There's no end to this!" Jude exclaimed. He used the metal of his bracers to block one golem's sword.

"What a mess!" Milla shouted as she clashed swords with another. She and Muzet had finished evacuating the onlookers to the inn.

"Guh! Holly an' I will handle Caster! The rest of ya take care of the Dragon Tooth Warriors!" Lancer exclaimed.

"But why?!" Gaius demanded as he knocked back one familiar's sword with his own.

"With all the mana she's gathered, Caster can keep creating these golems!" Lancer replied. "We need to take out their creator!"

Caster chuckled. "I'd like to see you try." Several pinkish-white magic circles appeared around her. Blasts of magic rained down at Lancer. He jumped to the side to avoid them. She turned her head to see that Holly was casting. A circle pointed at her and magic was fired. Lancer grabbed his Master and pulling her out of harm's way.

"She doesn't leave many openings," Lancer spat. More magic rained down. Holly finished casting.

"Force Field!" a large, green dome surrounded the two, blocking the attack.

Muzet destroyed several more golems with Sharpened Roots. However, more rose up to take their place.

"This is endless!"

Gaius cut through several. "We just need to hold out!"

Elize cast Dark Visitor. She didn't see one sneaking up behind her.

"Gnome!" The Great Spirit Milla summoned destroyed that and many others.

Holly's Force Field wore off and Lancer grabbed her, jumping around to avoid the hail of magic. Most of the ground below them was shattered. Caster took out a dagger. It was zig-zagged and was silver.

"This will end it!" she cried out as she flew down, slashing with the dagger. Lancer blocked it with the shaft of his spear. Caster moved the staff in front of her. A magic circle suddenly appeared. It fired, sending the demigod skidding back as be blocked with Gae Bolg. But Holly was gone.

"Take this!" She appeared behind the witch, slashing down with the demon hand. The claws scored Caster's back and she screamed, falling down. But her body dissolved into numerous butterflies.

"Holly! Look out!" Lancer pulled her away from the sudden barrage of magic from behind her. Caster growled. A golem lunged at the two from behind. Lancer spun around and slashed the golem apart.

"Finally!" Caster laughed as she flew down at Holly, dagger primed to strike. Lancer spun his head around and quickly moved in front of Holly.

The dagger was plunged into Lancer's chest. He screamed as red energy streamed out of it. Holly grabbed her right hand as a sudden pain flared in it. She looked at it, seeing her three Command Seals flash on the back of it before vanishing completely. Caster removed the dagger and Lancer stood before her, as if frozen.

"What are you waiting for?! Finish her!" Holly shouted.

Lancer was struggling to move.

"Why isn't he obeying my orders?!" Holly demanded.

Caster cackled and held up the dagger. "This is my Noble Phantasm, Rule Breaker! It nullifies your pact with your Servant! He now belongs to me!" She lowered it and looked at Lancer, raising her right hand. Holly's Command Seals were on the back of it. "Now for your first order: kill your former Master."

Lancer grunted and was trying to resist as he slowly turned around, getting Gae Bolg primed to strike. "Ugh...I won't..."

"You don't have a say in the matter," Caster said, grinning. The top part of the sun faded after the three flashed.


	14. A Regretful Battle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that with Rule Breaker, you can't reestablish your pact; you have to do it with another Servant. But for this, you can do the former.

As the Command Seal was used, Lancer grit his teeth.

"Sorry, Holly."

Even though a Noble Phantasm reveals a Servant's true name, Holly was drawing a serious blank with Rule Breaker. Thankfully, Gaius saved her.

"So you're Medea?"

A Dragon Tooth Warrior took this chance to attack the king. He and the warrior blocked swords several times before the man cut it with his katana. He glanced at the two spirits. "Milla! Muzet! Help her!"

Lancer stabbed with Gae Bolg. Milla brought the blade of her sword down on the shaft to stop it. The man pulled the spear away and jumped back several times to avoid the balls of gravity thrown by Muzet.

"We're here to help you against Caster and Lancer," Milla said as she stepped back to Holly's side.

Muzet flew at Caster. She used Illusionary Charge. Medea vanished into a cluster of butterflies as the woman charged at her. They reformed behind her. Muzet quickly spun around and used Sharpened Petals. Caster used the flat of Rule Breaker to block the hair that came at her. Muzet moved back just as Lancer jumped up and slashed at the woman.

Muzet descended at the other side of Holly. "I hope you won't mind if I rough up your former Servant a little."

Holly looked at her. "We don't need to hurt Lancer. We just have to kill Caster in order to free him."

Milla used her sword to block Lancer's spear strike. "Easier said than done. Right now, Lancer's our enemy."

Holly clenched her fists and Caster laughed. Holly glared at the witch. She held her demon hand to the side and jumped up. She raked downward with her claws, but they were blocked by Gae Bolg's shaft. The demigod had jumped up in order to protect the other Servant. The two landed and broke apart.

Lancer was struggling again to resist the Command Seal. Medea was about to use another Command Seal, but she suddenly flew back as Milla cast Sunburst.

"Don't even try!" the blonde shouted. Caster didn't see Muzet fly up behind her.

"Binding Sphere!" Medea spun around and fired a beam of magic, nullifying the attack. Milla jumped up in front of Muzet and brought her sword down on the witch. Caster held her staff up to block and knock Milla down. Muzet attacked again. "Wind Tussle!" Medea used a beam of magic to block each hair attack. _'This Servant is getting on my nerves!'_

With the others, Leia Linked with Jude, both using Scylla Strike to plow through a few other golems. Rowen used Rock Trine and Gaius used Demon Fang to destroy the two they were dealing with. Elize healed any injuries with Pixie Circle then turned right around and used Pow Hammer on one. It lifted its sword up to block. Elize ran forward and clashed her wand with the sword. This was just a distraction. She jumped back as soon as Teepo appeared over the warrior, using Teepo Smash to crush it.

Holly and Lancer were staring at each other.

"I really don't wanna do this," Holly said.

Lancer grit his teeth and raised his spear up to his waist. "I don't wanna either, but I don't have a choice."

The Servant ran forward, shattering the ground where he took off. Holly bent backwards as the spear tip went over her head. She placed the demon hand on the ground and used it to throw herself into the air upside-down, kicking the demonic spear to the side. She righted herself and clawed downward. Lancer jumped back, Holly's claws ripping into the ground. Lancer charged forward in that instant, kicking Holly in the gut. She flew back, but planted her feet in a pillar behind her, using it to spring forward, swinging her left hand sideways. Lancer held Gae Bolg up so the claws met the shaft.

"Yer goin' easy, aren't ya?" Lancer asked. Holly placed the red palm on the shaft to push herself back.

"I just don't want to hurt you," Holly replied. Against his will, Lancer got his spear ready to strike again.

"Damn...The Command Seal is forcin' me to go at ya with the intent to kill." He burst forward. Holly moved to the side to avoid the stab. In the same instant, she slashed at his head with the demon hand. But she stopped when the claws were just millimeters from the side of his face. Tears were forming in the corners of her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I can't bring myself to harm you!" she cried. Lancer suddenly moved on his own, smacking away the hand with Gae Bolg. Without missing a beat, he brought it back and stabbed forward, the tip going for Holly's forehead. But he stopped it, arms trembling as he fought the order.

Medea moved back to avoid Milla's Sigil Spear. She looked at Lancer and tsked.

"Useless. Is he really resisting a Command Seal?!" She held up her right hand. The Command Seals were glowing. "I order you again to kill your former Master!" They flashed and the bottom right section of the sun faded.

Holly jumped back as the spear suddenly finished its thrust forward. Lancer's entire body shook as he fought the order. His eyes were shut tightly and he grit his teeth together. He slowly looked over at Milla as the spirit landed. "Ugh...Kill me..."

Holly's eyes widened. "What?!"

"Now..!...Before I...kill Holly..!" he shouted.

Holly sprang forward and grabbed him. "There has to be another way!"

Milla had to grab the mage and pull her back as Lancer slashed downward. "Are you insane?! You shouldn't go near him right now!"

Muzet fired several gravity balls to block Medea's attack on Milla and Holly with magic beams. "At this rate, we may have to do that."

Holly snapped her head around to glare at the woman. "No you won't! Just focus on Caster!"

Milla jumped up with Holly as Lancer came at them, spear coming down and smashing the ground. Milla let go of Holly and jumped up as the witch glanced at the former Master and Servant. Milla brought her sword down on a surprised Caster. "Death Knell!"

Medea was knocked to the ground. Muzet kept Lancer still with a ball of gravity. That left Caster to a pissed Holly. She charged forward before the witch could recover and slashed the Servant, claws drawing blood up in an arc. Medea cried out and stumbled had jumped up and slammed the hand into Caster's chest, pinning the witch down and claws pricking into pale skin, drawing beads of blood.

"...Get her, Holly..." Lancer murmured from within the violet orb.

Holly leaned over to where Caster's ear would be underneath her hood. "You don't mess with my Servant!" she hissed. She drew the left hand back, bringing Medea relief as the weight was lifted. The relief was gone in the next instant as the hand came back down, tearing into her chest and destroying her spiritual core.

As the witch's body faded into violet mana. Muzet released the ball of gravity holding Lancer. Holly turned around to face the man, blood dripping from the tips of her claws and ran over to him. The rest of the group stopped fighting as the Dragon Tooth Warriors collapsed into a pile of dust.

Lancer collapsed on one knee, running low on mana. Holly stopped in front of him, reciting the incantation to reestablish their pact. She held her right hand out to Lancer. "Hear me. My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny. If you heed the Grail's call and submit yourself to my will and reason." The back of that hand flashed. "Then answer me! And hearing your answer, I will entrust my fate to your sword!" The three Command Seals appeared.

Lancer grinned. "I accept on my honor as a Lancer. An' I take ya as my Master, Holly!" Both the Command Seals and the Servant flashed red. Almost an hour later, the Aladhi boat sailed into port and Alvin and Ludger were running toward the group. By then, all the blood had been wiped off Holly's left hand and it had vanished under the bandages.

"So what happened?" Alvin asked.

"A lot of things, but the important thing is that Caster's dead," Holly replied.

"And you have your Servant back," Milla added.

"Wait, she had lost Lancer?!" Ludger demanded.

Gaius crossed his arms. "Caster's Noble Phantasm broke the pact between Holly and Lancer and made Lancer her Servant."

Ludger looked around. "Any idea on what the divergence catalyst could be?"

Jude shook his head. "No clue."

People were starting to swarm out of the inn now that the fighting was over. Out of the corner of her eye, Holly saw the glow of a divergence catalyst coming from a crate of goods.

"Is that it?" she asked.

Ludger followed her gaze. The crate was near a vendor. "Yeah, I wonder what that is?" The group went up to the vendor, distracting him, while Ludger, Alvin, Holly, and Lancer were checking out the contents. It was full of red-and-blue fruits.

Holly picked one up. "I've never seen this type of fruit before."

Alvin scratched his head. "'Yeah. Neither Rieze Maxia or Elympios sell these."

Ludger stood up. "Let's get this done and over with." He transformed into his chromatus and was about to stab the fruit.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

The four looked over to see the very angry vendor.

"Guys!" Holly exclaimed. Gaius and Jude grabbed the man, trying to hold out as he struggled.

"Ya might wanna hurry it up, Ludger!" Alvin said. Ludger nodded and stabbed the fruit, pulling out the divergence catalyst. The world shattered right as the police showed up.

* * *

"I'm glad that's done," Leia said as the group boarded the train for Trigleph.

"Yeah, all that's left is Saber and Archer," Holly added.

"But we don't even know how strong Saber is," Elize piped up. "Didn't Holly and Lancer say that Saber is usually one of the strongest Servants?"

"I don't think she's much stronger than Berserker," Lancer pointed out.

Ludger was on his GHS. "...Give me a break! I'm not a machine! ...Fine, but I'm not happy."

"What was that?" Jude asked. Ludger let out a heavy sigh, putting his phone away.

"Change of plans, guys. We're taking a train to Drellin."

"Not another Fractured Dimension?!" Holly exclaimed. "Can't Vera cut us a break?!"

Ludger was rubbing his temples. "Yeah...That's where the rift is."

"Any Servants?" Lancer asked.

"No, and no weird reading from the Alters either," Ludger replied.

"Can't we just ignore this one?" Holly asked.

Elize twiddled her thumbs. "I couldn't sleep well knowing there's one out there we didn't take care of."

Rowen nodded. "It's at an inconvenient time, but we can't afford to ignore any Fractured Dimensions."

"Fine. I'm in," Milla said.

Muzet looked over to her sister. "If Milla's in, I'm in too."

Alvin smirked. "I may as well join in too."

Leia sighed. "That makes half the group...Fine, count me in."

"It's not like I'll let Milla handle this without me," Jude said.

Gaius closed his eyes. "I don't want everyone thinking of me as a coward." He opened them. "What about you two?"

Lancer grinned. "I'll go wherever Holly decides."

Holly sighed, crossing her arms. "I guess I'll join in, too. Let's get this over with."

* * *

Vera was at the front desk with another employee. She had just gotten off the phone with Ludger. The other person smirked.

"This is like two in one day for Ludger. He must be _pissed_."

"Whether or not he throws a fit won't change the fact there's a Fractured Dimension to be taken care of," the woman replied simply.

The employee leaned back in his chair. "That's pretty cold. But true."

Vera didn't even look at him. "It doesn't matter whether or not it's cold. He's a DODA agent, so he needs to do his job."

The employee looked at the woman. "You're all business. That's probably another reason guys never ask you for a second date."

Vera froze, cheeks going red. "...Where did you hear that..?"

The man laughed. He'd finally managed to get a reaction from Vera. "Who else?! Your sister, of course!"

Vera growled. "I'm going to kill you, Nova..!" The computer beeped and the man sat up again.

"What was that?"

"More information on the Fractured Dimension," Vera replied, leaning over to the computer to read the information on the screen. "Oh no..."

"What is it?"

"I told Ludger that none of the target Servants or Alters were detected in this one."

"I take it that's wrong now?"

"Yes. It seems a Servant has just entered the Fractured Dimension. I need to warn Ludger right away."

The employee looked on his own computer. "Yeeeeaaaah, it's kinda late to warn him."

Vera turned her head to look at him. "Why is that?"

"According to the tracker in his DODA mark, he just went into the Fractured Dimension."

"I can still call him."

"Even if you do, they can't turn back now. We should just let him find out on his own."

* * *

The rift took the group to the exit to the Catamar Highroad. They decided to split up like they had during the hot springs hotel in order to find the divergence catalyst faster. They were fine with letting Holly and Lancer go on their own since neither Servant was picked up.

The fourth person the two questioned gave them useless information, just like with the other three. The Master and Servant were walking away. They saw Milla, Jude, and Ludger exit the inn they were questioning the people in. The looks on their faces told the mage and demigod they came up empty.

"Any idea what the catalyst is?" Lancer asked his Master.

Holly sighed. She was completely exhausted from the fight against Caster. "If I did, we would have already found it by now."

"Yeah. Ya have a point." Lancer sighed. "Man I'm bored!"

Holly was in the same boat, but she wasn't about to complain about it. "We're asking around for information. It's not meant to be fun."

Lancer stopped. "Ya feel that?"

Holly had. "It's a Servant looking for a fight. But according to Vera, none were supposed to be here."

Lancer looked to where the mana was coming from, from the Catamar Highroad. "It might've just gotten here. An' it seems to be pickin' up my presence. 'Sides this will be a good way to relieve my boredom."

"Yeah. We should take care of it now."

"What 'bout the others?"

"No need to involve them in this. Besides, they're busy trying to smoke out the divergence catalyst." The mana pulsed, seeming to be inviting them to come over.

"Fine, whatever yer decision is," Lancer said. Careful not to draw attention from either the group or the townsfolk, the two made their way into the Catamar Highroad. The mana led them to the center of the giant area in the first section. It was driving away the monsters so they wouldn't be interrupted. The source was from a man wearing black and red.

"Archer!" Holly hissed, going into a battle stance. Lancer switched to his fighting attire and summoned Gae Bolg in his hand.

Archer smirked. "You're looking better from the aftermath of our last fight, Lancer."

"Yeah, but things'll be different this time!" Lancer snapped back.

Archer chuckled. "It'll just be a repeat of last time since you're protecting someone."

Lancer snarled. "It won't be like last time since I know most of the tricks ya have up yer sleeves!"

"Lancer," Holly said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Lancer turned his head to look at her. "What is it Holly?"

"Maybe it's best if I stay out of this fight, for your sake."

Lancer's eyes widened. "If ya think yer gonna weight me down, yer wrong!"

"No, Archer's right. You'll do better in this fight without having to watch out for me."

"Even if ya stay outta this one, ya can still be attacked. An' there's no guarentee I'll be able to protect ya in time."'

"Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself. And don't forget I can use magic to shield myself."

Archer scoffed. "Don't worry; I won't target you. My target is your Servant anyway. Though if you interfere, I can't guarentee I'll avoid you."

Lancer bared his fangs at Archer. A demonic aura enveloped him. "If ya hurt Holly, I'll kill ya!"

Holly glared at Archer. "Don't underestimate Lancer! He's strong!"

Archer laughed and closed his eyes. "Clearly, seeing as how four Servants are dead." He opened them. "But I wonder if you can last against me!"

Lancer narrowed his serpentine eyes. "Don't take me fer some weakling! I'll be able to hold my own against ya!"

Archer smirked and the black and white swords appeared in his hands. "Good. I don't want this fight to be too easy."

Lancer pushed Holly to the side. "Find cover, Holly! I'm gonna take this bastard down!"

Holly hastily nodded and hid behind a rock. The two Servants went into battle stances.

"Now that she's out of the way, let's see how well you can really fight," Archer said.

"Oh, you'll see my best!" Lancer growled. "But ya won't like it since I'll kick yer ass!"


	15. The Rivals' Battle

* * *

Holly watched as the two spirits clashed, sparks flying from either weapon. Lancer was holding Gae Bolg straight up so the shaft blocked Archer's swords as they were swung sideways. The demigod flipped the upright tip down, going for the other warrior's head. Archer jumped back to avoid the swing, the tip of the spear smashing into the earth.

Archer summoned several swords in the air around his head. They all launched themselves at the blue warrior. Lancer swung his spear in front of him, blocking all the swords. They hit the ground and blew up, causing only a tiny explosion. The ground under Lancer shattered as he charged at the red-clad man, swinging his spear sideways. Archer held one of his two swords to the side in order to block. He grit his teeth as he tried to withstand the strength Lancer put into his strike. More swords appeared over the enemy and Lancer had to jump back several times to dodge them, relieving Archer of the spear.

Lancer quickly held Gae Bolg sideways and up as Archer suddenly jumped at the hero, swinging both swords down. Lancer grunted from the weight being pushed into the shaft, his feet sinking into the earth. His arms gave and the spear was pushed down. The Irishman stepped back so the red lance and swords would hit the ground, the force creating a small crater. He let go of the other end and swung it at the enemy Servant. Archer held up one sword to block. Lancer freed the tip of his spear and the two jumped back.

Lancer quickly glanced over at Holly and Archer smirked. "Still worried about her? As long as she stays out of this, I won't attack her."

"I dunno if yer plannin' to kill her to put an end to this fight early," Lancer replied.

"I would have more fun fighting you at your best."

"Heh, it's yer funeral." The two charged at each other at blinding speeds, exchanging strikes and blocks. Several times, one of Archer's swords shattered. Lancer would go right in for a stab at the enemy's head only for the spear to be blocked by the other sword and the one that just appeared in the man's hand. The two jumped into the air, Archer higher than Lancer. Gae Bolg would be thrust up, but the other Servant made it go for his right. He slid down the length, sword sending up sparks. He would stab the other out, but Lancer let his body fall back, causing the blade to cut the air over him. He let out a kick and Archer brought both swords in an X shape where the foot would land in order to block. The force of the kick knocked both Servants back, righting themselves so they landed on their feet. Both of Archer's swords crumbled after absorbing Lancer's kick. The man threw both handles to the side and two new swords appeared in his hands.

"Geez, how many swords does he even have?!" Holly grumbled. Archer grinned and ran at Lancer, stabbing both swords forward. Lancer ducked and slid towards Archer as the swords went over his head. He brought Gae Bolg up in between them, breaking the blades apart and stood up so he right in front of Archer's face. He threw a punch at the enemy's chest, making him skid back several meters. He jumped back as Lancer suddenly appeared in front of him and stabbed at him. Archer was a little late and had to use the flat of his left blade to block the red tip as he jumped.

Lancer grinned. "Heh, ya haven't been able to land any hits on me. Am I too much fer ya to handle?" He held his spear up in a stabbing position. "Well, that's fine by me."

"That's about to change," Archer growled. Both of his swords vanished into blue mana as the black bow showed up in his left hand. Several swords appeared in the air around the Servant and fired themselves at Lancer. The demigod managed the block them all, but the sudden arrow that flew at him surprised him. He tried to quickly block it, but only managed to knock it up. It grazed the plating over his right shoulder as it landed in the ground behind him before dissolving into blue mana. More arrows fired from Archer flew at the knight. He deflected all but one. That one whizzed by his ear, coming so close to hitting his head that it tugged some strands of his blue hair. He paused in shock of how close that one was. It was all the time Archer needed. The black bow disappeared into blue mana and the two swords appeared in his hands. He ran at Lancer, stabbing the black one forward.

* * *

Later, the rest of the group met at the exit to the Catamar Highroad. They all noticed Holly and Lancer were absent.

"Man, where are they?!" Leia demanded.

Muzet glanced at Gaius. "You don't think they're fighting a Servant on their own again, do you?"

Gaius had his arms crossed. "I don't think so. Vera didn't pick up any target Servants or Alters."

"They might have gone out to hunt the divergence catalyst," Ludger suggested. "Oh yeah, does everyone know what we think it is?"

Some people the group questioned mentioned a large monster in the fist area of the Catamar Highroad. It's known as 'The Lord of Catamar.'

"Of all things it could be, it would be a monster," Elize said.

"So do you think Holly and Lancer are fighting it?" Rowen asked.

"If so, they need Ludger to finish it," Jude said.

"Why don't we call Holly and ask her?" Leia suggested. Ludger took out his GHS and called the mage.

"I hope they aren't in trouble," Milla murmured.

"If they are, we'll have to bail 'em out," Alvin said. The ringing from Ludger's phone stopped and Holly's voicemail sounded. Ludger sighed and ended the call before putting the phone away.

"Not picking up?" Muzet asked.

Ludger shook his head. "Nope. They may be too busy fighting for her to answer."

Leia shuddered. "Does that mean the monster's tough? I was hoping it wasn't."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "They wouldn't..."

Jude glanced at her. "What is it?"

"Now that I'm actually concentrating on it, I can feel mana coming from the Catamar Highroad."

Muzet began focusing right then. "So can I."

"Is it a Servant?" Rowen asked.

Alvin put his hands lazily behind his head. "I thought Vera told us there weren't gonna be any."

"No, it's definitely a Servant, despite what Vera told us," Milla said.

Gaius growled. "They're most likely fighting it without having told any of us."

"If we destroy the catalyst, that will destroy it, right?" Elize asked timidly.

Jude shook his head. "No, it won't. If it's one of the Servants we're after, it isn't from this dimension and will just go into another one if we destroy this one."

"If they are fighting one, we have to provide them with support," Milla said.

* * *

Blood dripped onto the ground. Archer's sword was thrust out, going through a midsection. Lancer's eyes were wide.

"Holly!" he exclaimed. The Master had run out in front of the demigod and took the blow for him. Archer raised the other sword and slashed down. Holly's demonic hand appeared and she brought it up, catching the white blade. A little blood leaked from it. A red circle surrounded the woman.

"Fireball!" Archer jumped back and to the side to avoid the spirit arte. He freed both swords, the blood on the left hand allowing him to slide the blade out. Holly stumbled back and the Irishman caught her. The sword had gone all the way through the mage's abdomen and she was breathing hard. Her GHS started ringing, but the knight ignored it.

"What'd ya do that fer?!" the man demanded.

"It was...for your sake..." she panted. She pulled herself away from him. "I can...keep going..." She began casting a quick wind spell. "Wind Blade!"

Archer sidestepped to avoid it. "You realize now that you've gotten involved, I'll target you too." One sword appeared over him and launched itself at Holly. Lancer quickly moved in front of her, using Gae Bolg to block.

He was baring his fangs. "I'd like to see ya try!" The two spirits ran at each other, clashing weapons. That's when the rest of the group came into sight.

"So you two _were_ fighting a Servant on your own!" Muzet exclaimed.

Lancer grit his teeth as he tried pushing back the enemy. He was only concerned with one thing right now. "Take Holly an' get her to safety!"

Jude blinked at Lancer. "Why do we- -Holly!" He ran over to the bleeding mage. But she pushed him away.

"No...I need to...help Lancer..."

"You're hurt!" Leia shouted. "Like you can help him during this battle!"

Gaius looked at Lancer. "And we'll help you!"

"Just leave Archer to me!" Lancer protested. Both weapons were forced down, their owners still forcing them to grind against one another. "He made this personal by injurin' Holly!"

Gaius stared at Lancer for awhile. "...Fine."

"Gaius! We need to help Lancer!" Jude exclaimed.

Alvin narrowed his eyes. "Gaius is right. We should leave this to Lancer."

"But why?!"

"He's the only one of us that wants revenge against Archer," Milla answered. "Just let him be. For now, we should take care of Holly."

"I'm fine..!" Holly insisted.

Elize shook her head. "No, you aren't! You've lost a lot of blood."

Archer glanced over as the group moved Holly by a cliff wall. He jumped back just as Lancer slashed down diagonally with his spear. Archer let go of the handles of both swords and let them fall to the ground. They dissolved into blue mana.

" **I am the bone of my sword. Unknown to death nor known to life. Unlimited blade works!** "

Lancer shielded his eyes from the sudden bright light from Archer. When he pulled his arm away, he saw that he was in the reality marble from last time.

"Not this...again..."

Lancer turned his head and saw the rest of the group were several meters away. Great, they were all in danger too.

Archer chuckled. "I would focus more on myself if I were you." Lancer reacted in time to deflect several swords launched at him.

Jude looked at Milla. "Can't you, Muzet, and the Four destroy this reality marble like last time?!"

Milla shook her head. "We can only do it from the outside."

More swords launched themselves at Lancer an he blocked them all. He couldn't dodge or he'd put the others in danger. However, he couldn't keep this up forever. Taking a deep breath, he ran at Archer.

"What is he doing?" Leia murmured. Holly's eyes widened.

"Lancer! You can't!"

Archer laughed. "Listen to your Master. Even you should know this is suicide." To prove his point, one summoned sword skewered one of the spearman's shoulders, going through the armor. Lancer didn't even slow as he got closer to Archer, raising Gae Bolg up to stab. Several swords appeared behind the demigod and sliced into his back. He winced, but that didn't stop him from impaling Archer through the chest.

"Looks like I win..." Lancer said. The reality marble vanished and Lancer pulled his spear out, blood painting the ground. Archer gave a wet cough before vanishing into blue mana. Lancer suddenly fell forward, using his spear to keep his entire body from hitting the ground. With the swords in him gone, blood was pouring out of his multiple wounds.

"L-Lancer..." Holly groaned. Jude and Elize had to push her back down so she wouldn't move. Blood continued to pour out of her wound and the two healers were trying their hardest to stop it.

"At least it's over," Alvin breathed. He relaxed too soon. What looked like a massive boar with two giant horns charged at the group. It was black-purple. Gaius took out his katana to defend and the horns ground against it, making the king slide back a little.

"I can't believe we forgot about this thing!" Leia exclaimed as she took out her staff.

Ludger took out his twin swords. "It must have been attracted by the scent of blood."

Alvin and Rowen helped carry Lancer over to Jude and Elize so they could heal him before taking out their own weapons and facing the monster. Ludger went first, using Endless Waltz to try cutting the horns. The boar stepped back and rammed Ludger after the arte was done, sending him flying back and in the air. Muzet flew forward and caught him.

Milla used Whirling Assault, cutting the beast's left side. It roared and swung it's head to the side, horns knocking the spirit away. Gaius' Demon Fang made it recoil. Alvin ran at it to cut it with his broadsword, but the monster charged forward and he ended up having to use the flat of the weapon in order to not be gored by the horns.

Leia ran up and hit the side of the boar's head and made its head snap sideways. She jumped back as Muzet's gravity ball enveloped the beast. Rowen used Wind Blade, slicing off the horns right as the purple orb vanished.

It roared and charged at the old man, but Gaius hit it with Beast and made it fall to the side.

"Now this ends!" Milla shouted as she jumped at the monster and brought her sword down, slicing the belly open.

"Ludger!" Alvin shouted. The monster twitched and went still. Ludger transformed and stabbed the creature, ripping out the divergence catalyst.

* * *

The group made it back to Trigleph and gave Vera the report on the Fractured Dimension. Alvin and Gaius carried Holly and Lancer into Jude's apartment.

"Geez, that Archer really did a number on both of them," Alvin said. Though Lancer was covered in more bandages than Holly, his Master's were more red.

"All that's left is Saber," Muzet sighed.

"Don't forget we also need to find a way to keep Lancer in this world," Milla reminded her.

"I wonder if that's possible..." Leia murmured.

"It was possible in two Fractured Dimensions," Jude pointed out.

"But...I wonder if it's possible without the Holy Grail," Elize said.

"A method must exist that we haven't thought of!" Ludger exclaimed.

"If one does, I can't imagine it'll be an easy thing to do," Milla said.

Gaius looked down at Holly. "I don't think that'll be a problem for Holly. It's clear she's willing to do anything for Lancer."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't think this is just about over. I have plenty of surprises in store.


	16. An Evil Shadow

The next day, Holly awoke. The first thing she saw was that she was in Jude's apartment room, on his bed.

"You're awake," Jude said. He was sitting in a chair near the bed. "Lancer just woke up a few moments ago."

She turned her head and saw the demigod in the other bed. Though she had bandages on her own body, Lancer had more. Lancer chuckled. "At least Archer's gone now."

"Yeah, but that stunt you pulled nearly cost you your life," Holly said.

"Hey, at least it worked in the end."

Holly sighed. "Just don't scare me like that again."

Lancer stared at her. "What 'bout what ya did? That was pretty stupid!"

"It was better than you losing your life!"

Jude let out a loud sigh. "Enough with your lovers' quarrel!"

Holly's jaw dropped. "Lovers' quarrel?!"

"You heard me. Now can it!"

* * *

Later in the day, Holly and Lancer were healed enough by the spirit artes to move around. The group ate at the bar in Duval. Holly was giving Jude the evil eye as she ate her meal.

Alvin blinked at her. "You have it in for Jude or something?"

"Just pissed at him for a comment he made."

"It doesn't surprise me that he's acting different than normal," Leia said. "He was up all night healing you and Lancer. He's probably dead tired."

Holly huffed. "I don't care; I'm still ticked!"

Lancer laughed and wrapped one arm around her shoulder. "Now, now. Calm down, Holly."

"Geez, whatever." She leaned into him.

Rowen spoke up. "So we just have Saber to deal with?"

"Yeah," Holly replied. "Then we have to take care of the Grail and the war will be over."

"Do you have any idea who it is, Lancer?" Ludger asked.

"If I did, I would've toldja all long ago," Lancer told him.

"Oh, right." Ludger quickly looked away from Lancer.

"But we need to come up with a plan before facing that Servant," Gaius pointed out. "Rushing in without a strategy will only get us killed."

"But we can't formulate a plan since we don't even know Saber's abilities," Muzet pointed out.

"Sabers use swords, so we can work with that," Holly said.

"And you mentioned they're strong?" Milla asked.

"Yeah, they have high parameters- -some A-ranked," the Master replied. "We need to keep on our toes when facing it."

Ludger's GHS rang and Leia groaned. "Did Vera really have to pick now of all times to bother us about a Fractured Dimension?!"

Holly had her eyes half-opened. "Really, Ludger. You should tell Vera to shove it sometime."

Ludger opened his phone. "My ears are burning. Was the group just talking about me?"

"You bet, bitch!" Holly shouted. They could hear Vera sigh.

"I take it she's mad at me for some reason? That aside, I believe you know what I'm calling about."

"Yeah, and some people aren't too happy about it," Ludger replied. "Like Holly."

"Well, anyway, there's a new Fractured Dimension that has been detected. The rift is in Sharilton. As for Servants, the targetted one wasn't detected. However..."

"What is it?" Ludger asked.

"We're picking up a mana signature identical to an Alter's, but at the same time it isn't."

"And what does that mean for us?" Elize questioned.

"Just make sure to be careful in this one. Please deal with this at your earliest convenience."

"This isn't very convenient," Holly grumbled.

"...I'm still on the line and I just heard you," Vera said. She hung up then.

Holly took another bite of her food. "Good then."

"I take it we ned to hurry up with the eating?" Alvin sighed.

"Yep..." Ludger groaned.

* * *

The group entered the rift and showed up in the marketplace.

"I take it we should start asking around for clues as to what the divergence catalyst is?" Lancer asked.

"Yep, just like we always do," Leia replied.

Gaius was staring at Holly and Lancer. "Since another Servant's in this one, we should stay together."

"You don't trust us?" Holly asked.

"No, I don't," Gaius told her.

"Ouch, but it's justified."

Milla glanced at the antiques' shop owner. "Any rumors going around?"

"Eh, not lately," he replied.

"Any old ones?" Leia pressed.

"Well, this has been passed off as something someone made up."

Ludger stepped forward. "Please tell us anyway. I could help us find what we're looking for."

"Well, if you really wanna know, where's the harm in telling you? Now mind you, this wasn't proven, but rumors say that several years ago, some madman comitted a murder and hid himself in the Sapstrath Deepwood."

"Anything else we should know about? Like where in the forest he is?" Milla asked.

The shop owner shook his head. "There are doubts that this is even true. However, he's rumored to live in the large area in the forest, by the exit to this town."

"Thank you. You've been very helpful." Milla and the rest of the group went by the Sapstrath Highroad exit.

"Our divergence catalyst may be the murderer," Gaius said.

Leia shuddered. "It _had_ to be something scary, didn't it?"

Alvin smirked. "Scared?"

"Of course not!" Leia shouted at the merchant.

Elize was shaking. "Well, I am. What if it kills the rest of us too?"

"If things go bad, we can use the spud as a decoy while we run away," Alvin grinned. Elize held Teepo close.

"I won't let you use Teepo for that!"

Jude sighed. "Quit teasing her, Alvin."

The man had a giant grin on his face. "Why? It's _fun_!"

"Not when you talk about using Teepo as bait!" Elize protested.

Alvin broke out laughing and Ludger sighed. "Let's get this over with before Elize tears Alvin apart."

* * *

A sudden chill went through the group as they entered the forest through the Sharilton exit.

"It just feels creepy..." Leia said slowly, looking around as if things were lurking in the shadows all around her.

"I wanna go back!" Elize cried as the bushes near her were rustled by the wind.

"Ugh, please don't wet yourselves," Alvin groaned.

Milla and Muzet exchanged looks. "Is it just me, or does the air hold a feeling of hostility?" Muzet asked.

"It's not your imagination; I feel it too," the spirit replied.

"It almost feels like something's watching us," Jude said.

"Or some _one_ ," Lancer added.

Holly shuddered. "Geez, it just feels so evil here."

"Don't worry; I'm here fer ya," Lancer reminded her.

"I know, but it feels like something will jump out at us at any second," Holly continued.

Leia gulped. "I really hope not." Bushes to her side rustled. She snapped around, taking out her staff. "What was that?!"

Jude sweatdropped. "Calm down. It's just the wind, Leia."

Leia laughed nervously. "O-Of course I k-knew that!"

Alvin smirked and snuck up behind the reporter. "Boo!"

Leia screamed so loud that everyone else, except a rolling on the ground laughing Alvin, had to cover their ears.

"Geez, could you be any louder, Leia?!" Muzet demanded. _'My poor ears!'_

Ludger glared at her, hands tightly over his ears. "Don't scream unless it's for something real! For Maxwell's sake, you almost blasted out my eardrums!"

"I think now I'm more scared of Leia than the forest," Elize said dryly.

"Knock it off, Alvin! It wasn't funny for the rest of us!" Gaius growled.

"I think they could hear you all the way in Sharilton," Rowen added.

"Would it kill you to tone it down, Leia?!" Holly snarled. "Are you okay, Lancer?" With the demigod's sensitive hearing, that no doubt really hurt him.

"Yeah, but my ears are buzzin'!" Lancer grumbled.

"Hey! Keep it down with the screamin'!"

At that instant, everyone uncovered their ears as they suddenly forgot about what Alvin just did to Leia.

"Who's there?!" Lancer demanded. A few moments later, a man walked out of the shadows in between the two trees leading to the next area. But his appearance made Holly look back and forth between him and Lancer.

"What the hell is going on?!" The stranger looked like Lancer, except his arms and legs looked like they were covered by black monster limbs with red lines. Behind him was a long black-and red tail covered in thorns. In one hand was the spear, Gae Bolg, except it had spikes near the bladed tip. A blueish-black hood was over his head with a red fur collar behind the neck. Red tatoos were over his face and body and his blue hair was down.

"Can't say I saw this coming," Alvin said.

"Enough with your jokes, Alvin!" Holly shouted. "But aside from that, this person looks like you, Lancer. But at the same time he doesn't."

Lancer growled as her read the aura. "This must be my Berserker form!"

"Oh, yeah. I forgot you could fall into that class and Caster," Holly said.

Alvin hefted his broadsword over his shoulder. "It's great and all that you know that, but the main question is whether or not this is the divergence catalyst."

Ludger took out his twin swords. "Yeah, my chromatus is telling me this Servant is it."

Lancer glanced at Holly. "Are ya okay to fight? Even though this is a Berserker, it's still me."

Holly shook her head. "I'll be okay to fight. Because you're wrong about one thing. He may have the same face as you, but this isn't really you!"

Berserker grinned as he looked at Holly. "Ah, seein' ya brings back memories."

"Holly was also your Master?" Milla asked.

"Indeed. However, I didn't enjoy havin' to be watched by a Master. So I made her use up all of her Command Seals so our pact would be broken an' I could kill her."

Lancer's eyes widened. "Ya did what?!"

"How have you not disappeared then?!" Milla demanded.

Berserker chuckled. "By bathing in the Grail Mud, I am able to maintain my physical form without a Master!"

"Yeah, but if you do that, you run a high chance of becoming an Alter," Holly growled.

"Maybe he did," Lancer pointed out. "But he's already so messed up in the head that his personality wouldn't change."

"Kinda strange hearing that about you," Alvin muttered.

Rowen threw a dagger at the enemy and Berserker blocked it with his spear. Gaius ran at the Alter while he was distracted by the first attack. The king's katana met the red shaft of Gae Bolg. Berserker smirked and punched the man back. He began cutting and dodging Muzet's gravity balls. He was too busy looking up to see Milla dash at him until the last second. He tried to swing his arm to the side to knock the spirit away, but her sword cut that arm. She jumped back to avoid his attempt at a defense against her. Leia got Berserker's attention by swinging her staff at him while Holly came at him from the other side. The left hand devoured a deep-blue gem. Water covered the entire arm and was spraying, especially around the claws like they were cutting the surface of a body of water. She slashed the Servant's back, water splashing onto him as she did so. She and Leia jumped safely back for Milla's spell.

"Lightning!" The water drenching the Alter intensified the arte, making him scream as he was electrocuted. The lightning died and Berserker hunched, panting. He glimpsed Jude running at him head-on.

"Palm Strike!" He jumped back to avoid a counterattack as Berserker went flying backwards, slamming into the trunk of a tree. Alvin held his gun up and fired.

"Squall Shot!" As the bullets rained down and downed the enemy, Ludger struck next.

"Armor Crusher!" The arte stunned the Servant and the young man jumped back just as Holly ran forward. She jumped up and brought her left hand down, going to smash the enemy's face into the ground by slamming the red palm into the back of Berserker's head. One clawed hand shot up and caught the woman by the throat. The mad demigod stood up, still holding the mage. She gasped for air as the grip around her neck tightened.

"Let her go!" Lancer shouted, running forward and spear drawn back to strike. The black tail whipped out and wrapped around the man's torso, lifting him up. The tail squeezed him harder and blood fell to the ground from the sharp ends digging into him.

"L-Lancer..." Holly managed to choke out before she took a sharp intake of breath as the hand squeezed harder.

"Cross Cleave!"

"Tiger Blade!"

While Alvin slashed the tail so it would let Lancer go, Gaius attacked the hand over Holly's throat. Berserker brought it back sharply, making Holly fall down. Gaius caught her before she hit the ground. Milla ran at Berserker, swinging her sword down. The Alter simply grabbed the blade with one hand.

"What?!" she exclaimed. The Servant grinned before impaling the spirit through the abdomen with Gae Bolg.

"Milla!" Jude shouted before charging at the enemy. Berserker glanced over at the scientist before throwing Milla's limp form at him. Jude's vision was obscured, allowing Berserker to sprint at him and punch the teen into the ground, shaking the ground and creating a small crater. Muzet flew down and caught her sister in time. Berserker grinned.

"Curruid Coinchenn!" Black armor cover his hands and head. The armor over the head had a long red horn and long red claws were on the ends of both hands. Gae Bolg had vanished.

"Is that the armor of Coinchenn?!" Lancer demanded.

"What's Coinchenn?" Elize asked.

"It was a sea monster and one of its bones created Gae Bolg!" Lancer replied.

"Great, so now we have to deal with that sea monster?" Alvin groaned.

"If it was killed once, it can be killed again!" Holly shouted. She ran at the enemy, claws out. The water vanished, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Get back here, Holly!" Lancer called after her. But it was too late. Berserker roared and began repeatedly slashing the mage with the long claws, drawing up blood each time. He reared one arm back before thrusting it forward, going for her heart. Someone shoved her to the side and a moment later, hot, thick blood pelted her. She looked to see who had pushed her out of harm's way and her eyes went wide.

"No, it can't be..! Lancer!"

The final thrust had gone through his midsection. Several red spikes stuck out of his back. Blood fell off them, joining the massive amount of blood that had splattered behind him.

Holly tried to get up, but pain went through her entire body from the several wounds over her chest. She could only watch helplessly as the spike retracted and clustered together as Berserker ripped the armored hand out of Lancer, letting his body fall on its side. Red and black mist covered the Alter and the armor was gone. Elize began hurriedly casting.

"Nurse!"

Jude was able to stagger to his feet and walk out of the smashed earth. Milla regained consciousness, but the spear wound remained. She groaned in pain. A little of Holly's bleeding stopped. She looked over at Lancer and saw his large wound remained, still on the ground in his own blood. Ludger held off Berserker while Alvin got Lancer near Elize. Rowen, with Leia's help, got Holly to Elize. Ludger grit his teeth as he held both swords up to block the Alter's fist. The pressure was enough to make him slide back a couple of meters, still holding off the Servant's black fist. The two pulled away just their strikes. Berserker swung Gae Bolg down and Ludger held both swords up over his head in an X, blocking the spear. Berserker kicked the agent away with one foot just as Rowen finished casting.

"Air Pressure!"

The spell was making Berserker bend over as he fought against the vacuum of air. Gaius ran at the Servant, katana at his side.

"Demonic Wrath!"

The red energy hit Berserker's chest and slammed him into the trunk of a tree, several cuts on his chest. He and Alvin slashed the beast over and over. Several slices were made on the Alter's body as well as his arms from raising them up to block. He swept the spear out across the ground, knocking the two men away. The raging Servant was breathing heavily. Jude appeared to the Alter's side, jumping up and throwing a punch at the enemy's head. He held his spear straight up, the weapon absorbing most of the attack. Berserker was still knocked to the ground on his side. Berserker got up and blocked Gaius' katana with one arm in time. The demigod winced as the blade dug deeply into his darkened skin.

"Binding Sphere!"

Berserker looked up and saw the Great Spirit's arte. He moved his tail in front of his face, the limb taking the attack instead. This left him open for Gaius' attack.

"Divine Ascension!"

Berserker roared as the katana made a long, vertical slice over his chest. He glanced to his left as Leia jumped at him, swinging down her staff. The Alter held up one arm to block, gritting his teeth as he felt the bones in the limb rattle. He quickly looked forward as Ludger ran at him.

"Falling Snow!"

Berserker tried blocking with his other arm, but Ludger was behind him in an instant, back facing the Alter and both swords out behind him. A moment later, blood burst from Berserker from the deep wounds that appeared over his abdomen. He roared and fell face-first down onto the ground. Ludger transformed into his chromatus and was about to stab the Servant with the Lance of Will when Holly's voice distracted him.

"Just hang in there, Lancer!"

Jude had joined Elize and both were working desperately to heal Lancer's massive wound. Holly had been given a couple of gels that helped stop most of her bleeding and dulled the pain some. The demigod had his eyes closed and was breathing heavily, chest heaving as he fought for air.

Ludger stared at the sobbing mage before hurrying up and destroying the catalyst. The world shattered and Muzet worked with Undine to stop Milla's bleeding due to her wound from Gae Bolg. Alvin went over to Elize and Jude.

"How is he?"

"He's alive, but healing Lancer's wound enough to at least stop his massive bleeding will be hard," Jude told him.

"It looks like this is the only way..." Holly murmured. She placed both hands over the wound.

"Are you planning on performing another mana transfer on him?!" Gaius demanded. Holly didn't want to tell him how one is performed. He really didn't need to know that about the Master.

"I'm going to heal him using a different method," she replied.

"How?! You don't use healing artes!" Alvin exclaimed.

"This is a...different arte." Green light exploded from her hands.

"You can't mean using your own life!" Muzet shouted.

"What do you mean?" Gaius asked the spirit.

"She'll transfer her own life energy to Lancer in order to save him. But there's a strong chance she'll die too!"

"What?! Someone stop her!"

Lancer's bleeding stopped and he slowly opened his eyes. Holly was panting. Alvin grabbed her.

"You shouldn't give up your own life to save his!"

"Let me go! This is the only way to save him other than a mana transfer!"

Holly stopped struggling when she felt a soft hand caress her cheek.

"I'm...not in danger...of dyin' anymore...Don't sacrifice...yer life..." Lancer said softly. Holly stared at him.

"Are you sure you'll be fine?"

"Don't worry; we'll keep healing him," Elize told her. She and Jude went back to their healing artes. Muzet flew over so she was near Holly.

"You're lucky you didn't lose your life. But don't do that again. Each time you increase the chances of you dying."

"I know," Holly replied. "But I'm willing to die for him."


	17. King Arthur

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is a little late. I had to make a last-minute change.

As the group left the Deepwood, Holly was breathing heavily and leaning against Lancer. The two, and Milla, had bandages over their wounds. That's when Ludger's phone went off. It was Vera.

"Another Fractured Dimension was discovered." A good majority of the group groaned. "The last targeted Servant is likely there as well, since we picked up one's mana signature."

"Some party members are injured," Ludger told her.

"I'm okay to fight," Milla said.

"So am I," Holly added. Gaius crossed his arms.

"Despite what you say, Milla is in better condition than either of you."

"Are you saying Lancer and I will be dead weight?!" Holly demanded.

"Yes, and you two should stay in this dimension."

Vera sighed. "Regardless, the rift is in Fort Gandala. Please take immediate action." She hung up.

"The rest of you guys are okay with us going, right?" Holly asked the others.

Jude looked down. "Sorry, Holly. I have to agree with Gaius on this one."

Leia nodded. "Yeah. In the condition you and your Servant are in, you two won't be able to fight as well."

Holly facepalmed. "Unbelievable...You guys are against us going as well..."

"Sorry about this," Ludger said sheepishly.

"Why don't you two wait for us back in Trigleph?" Rowen suggested.

"Fine, but now I'm mad!" Holly growled.

* * *

As Holly and Lancer were on the train from Marksburg to Trigleph, they saw they were the only ones on the train. It was a slow day. The former was grumbling non-stop.

"Those dicks, leaving us behind because they think we won't be able to fight as well..." the mage snarled.

"Well, they have a point," Lancer said. "My Berserker form took a lot outta the both of us. plus, ya did that thin' to save my life."

"Regardless of that, we both can still help out in the fight with Saber! They didn't need to leave us behind!"

"At least this means ya won't be in danger this time."

"Well I entered this fight knowing I could lose my life. Staying out of a fight against a Servant feels wrong."

Lancer wrapped both arms around his Master so her head was resting against his chest. "Problem is that I'm not in the best condition to fight alongside ya."

Holly relaxed against his body. "Yeah, and I don't want you getting killed while you're in this condition."

Something hit the train and it jerked sharply. The Master and Servant slammed into the wall, Lancer adjusting his position st the last second in order to prevent Holly from hitting the wall, instead slamming into the knight. The lights above them flickered and sparks flew from the train wheels as they struggled to continue gripping the rails.

"What the hell is going on?!" Holly demanded.

Lancer moved them off the wall. "Hell if I know."

The train was hit again and this time tipped as the wheels lost their grip on the tracks. The series of train cars tumbled down the cliff it was traveling over, landing hard on the left side in the dusty field below. Lancer was holding Holly close, shielding her the best he could as they fell out of their seat and slammed into the walls and ceiling as the train tumbled down the side of the rocky cliff. Several cars, including the one the conductor was in, burst into flame. Smoke quickly filled the car the Master and Servant were in. Holly hit her head hard on one metal bar inside that was sticking out.

"Oww...You okay, Lancer?" Holly groaned. She was rubbing the spot on her head that was hit. Some blood was coming from it.

Lancer shook the debris from his hair. "Yeah, just a little rattled." He summoned Gae Bolg in his right hand. "Let's get outta here." He turned his head to look at the wall behind him and stabbed the demonic spear into it. He began to slowly slice the metal away to create a hole. When he was done, he let go of Holly and the two crawled through the hole. Holly started coughing.

"I think I inhaled a lot of the smoke..."

Lancer looked back at the wreckage. It was all beat up, twisted, burnt, and scratched with several plumes of smoke rising up from it. He scratched his head. "Damn, I wonder what happened."

Holly began to brush herself off. She was covered in dust and soot. Several bruises were forming over her body from the shaking around she suffered. "Beats me. I'm just glad we survived this."

"Yeah, but- -" His eyes widened. "Didja feel that?!"

Holly narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, it's a Servant."

Lancer grinned. "If the others wanted to keep us outta the fightin', they shoulda took us to the Fractured Dimension."

Holly grit her teeth. "It must be Saber, meaning it went into a rift leading to the Prime Dimension."

Lancer changed into his battle attire. "Holly? Ya might wanna get back right now..."

"What do you- -" She was cut off by Lancer yanking her back before she could finish. A split-second later, a woman came down, swinging an invisible object so it cut the ground, sending up dust and pieces of shattered earth. She slowly looked forward as she got up.

Lancer was baring his fangs. "The aura I'm readin' tells me she's indeed Saber."

The woman blinked her blue-green eyes at the demigod. She had blonde hair with a little piece sticking up. The back was bound together into a bun with a braid and a blue ribbon. She wore a blue dress with silver armor, and gripping something that was being made invisible. Since she was a Saber, it was probably a sword. Since it was made invisible, just the appearance of the sword would probably reveal her true name. "Judging by your weapon, you must be Lancer, am I wrong?"

"Ya guessed it. An' yer Noble Phantasm must be a sword. But why are ya here?!"

"I couldn't find you in the last dimension I was in, so I entered the next rift I found. I detected your mana on the train and attacked it." She raised her invisible weapon. "As for what I have in my hands, I'll kill you before you can find out."

She sprang at Lancer, swinging her sword sideways. Lancer quickly jumped back, but the weapon lightly scratched his chest. She went in front of the man, bringing her weapon over her head. She swung it down and Lancer quickly blocked with the shaft of Gae Bolg. He knocked the tip to the ground with his spear, bringing Saber's body right next to his. He elbowed her away. As she flew back, the Servant swung her sword. Lancer ducked, the invisible blade slicing off some strands of blue hair.

"Without knowin' the sword's exact length, I don't know when to dodge," Lancer growled. He charged at Saber, stabbing forward with his spear. Saber turned so her right side faced the spearman, making the red blade go right past her abdomen. She turned and was facing Lancer head-on, bringing her sword's blade up. Lancer jumped back in time, holding the lance sideways and near his chest. Sparks flew from the shaft as the invisable sword hit the underside of it, drawing blood up as it lightly cut Lancer's abdomen. He landed a few meters back and sprung forward at the enemy without missing a beat, earth shattering from under his feet where he took off. He slashed his spear sideways at Saber's neck. The tip was just barely at it when something slammed into it, stopping it. Saber had both hands positioned like she was holding something up. She forced the spear's blade away and slashed down. Lancer jumped back and dust flew up from the ground where the blade would have hit. He moved behind his Master as she finished casting.

"Holy Rain!" Bolts of light rained down from the sky at Saber. She jumped all over to avoid them, but some got through, tearing the shoulders of her dress and the end, as well as scratching some of her armor. When the spell ended, she stood straight as her armor repaired itself.

Lancer narrowed his eyes. "I've never heard of a Servant who could repair their armor that quickly."

"Maybe there's something special about it," Holly said.

The earth below Saber flew up as she broke into a full sprint for Lancer. Holly took a few startled steps back, black hair flying into her face as the Servant went past her. Lancer quickly thrust his spear forward, but Saber grabbed the shaft in her left hand and pushed it away. The attack didn't pierce her armor and only scratched it, giving away what kind it was. Granted, it wasn't at full strength, but it should have at least pierced it. She swung her sword at the Irishman's neck. Holly cast a quick spell.

"Fireball!"

Saber cancelled her sword strike to block the ball of fire flying at her. Holly's demon hand showed itself and she ran at Saber from her right, slashing at the woman. She only managed to cut off a few blonde strands of hair as the Servant jumped back, letting go of Gae Bolg.

Lancer smirked. "Since that armor isn't thick, it must've been made with magic."

"So what if you know that now? It doesn't appear as if your spear can cut through magic."

"Heh, maybe not. But I fell better knowin' one of the two things I'm up against." He ran at Saber, bringing his spear up so that it would clash with the blade of her invisible sword. "Now all that's left is to learn the length of yer blade!"

Saber grit her teeth and allowed the spear to push her sword down, cutting her left shoulder. She jumped up and back. The blood staining the dress vanished, but her eyes widened.

"I can't heal the cut!"

Lancer grinned like a wild animal. "Of course ya can't. Any wounds made by this spear can't be healed fer as long as it exists!"

"A cursed red spear...That must be Gae Bolg! Which means you're the Son of Light, Cu Chulainn!"

"So ya know my true name, do ya? All that's left is to figure out yours! An' I know how to figure out the length of yer blade now!"

Holly had been casting a spell. "For now, get back, Lancer!" Lancer looked back and saw from the number of rings around Holly that she was casting a high-level spirit arte. Not wanting to get torn up by it, he jumped back and landed behind his Master. "Bloody Howling!"

Saber jumped to the side to avoid the onslaught of dark-element attacks. As soon as one foot touched the ground, she sprang forward at the mage, the ground shattering. She stabbed forward with her invisible blade.

"Now!" Holly was shoved to her left and almost hit the ground. There was a squelching sound and droplets of blood hit her face. Looking up, she saw the blade going through Lancer's left shoulder, the sword breaking though the armor easily. His right hand was up, hitting Saber's hands so it wouldn't be a fatal strike. Blood painted the earth behind him and drops of crimson were dripping off the blade. Saber ripped her sword out, blood following it and hitting the ground. The red liquid outlined the invisible sword.

Lancer smirked. "The length of yer blade was just given away."

Saber snarled and Holly ran over to Lancer. "Are you okay?!"

"I'd be lyin' if I didn't say this hurts like hell, but I'm able to stay standin'. Don't worry 'bout me; I'll be fine." He glanced at Saber's sword. "I knew that if blood covered it, it's length would be shown to us." He readied Gae Bolg by his side. "Now I can block without fear of gettin' cut in the process."

"Don't get too overconfident!" Saber growled. The woman vanished as she ran at blinding speeds. Lancer held up his spear and Saber appeared in front of him, her sword grinding against the shaft. She grinned. "I wonder how well you'll be able to handle Invisible Air being released?"

"What?!" Lancer exclaimed. A giant gust of sudden wind pushed him back. When he looked up, Saber was holding a golden sword. "A golden blade...Excalibur!"

"So you must be King Arthur," Holly added.

"Arturia Pendragon," the King of Knights corrected.

Lancer grinned and crouched, spear ready to stab. "Whether or not yer the King of Knights, I'll still kill ya!" He ran at Arturia, swinging his spear. The king swung down Excalibur on the shaft, making the bladed tip hit the ground. Lancer grit his teeth and Saber twisted her sword so the flat of it was on the spear. She swung it up, edge going for Lancer's neck. He leaned back of the blade only left a shallow cut over his throat. A soon as the sword was to the side of his head, he fell back all the way and kicked Saber back with his right foot.

Saber landed on her feet and Lancer had jumped up at her, bringing down Gae Bolg. Saber quickly held up Excalibur to block, but the weight forced the blade down, cutting her right shoulder deeply. As Lancer's feet hit the ground, Saber swung the golden sword out in a sweeping motion, making the demigod jump up and back.

Arturia was wincing slightly from her wound. Lancer smirked as the woman's blood dripped off the blade of the demonic spear and soaked into the ground. She vanished and reappeared at Lancer's left, swinging Excalibur. Lancer ducked as the blade went over his head and brought his spear up, knocking away the blade. He lowered the lance and began rapidly stabbing at the king. Her eyes widened and some of the attack punched through her armor, slicing through her chest. She jumped back, causing droplets of blood to mark her trail. She went onto one knee, one armor-covered hand over her chest.

Holly took this chance to attack her. "Freeze Lancer!"

Saber was still able to move enough to where she used Excalibur to deflect the ice. The various holes in her armor vanished as blue mana plugged them up. She got to her feet and held the golden sword over her head. Golden mana rose out of the ground and went into the blade.

"Oh shit!" Lancer exclaimed as he sensed a big attack coming. He ran over to his Master.

"Ex...calibur!" Arturia swung her sword down, golden energy skimming over it towards Holly and Lancer.

* * *

The rest of the group appeared in the Talys Highroad entrance to Fort Gandala after destroying the Fractured Dimension.

Alvin had his hands lazily behind his head. "That was easy."

Leia sighed with relief. "I'm just glad we didn't see Saber.

Milla had a hand to her chin. "I wonder why we didn't. Vera told us she detected Saber."

Alvin began patting her back hard enough to make the spirit stumble forward. "Who cares about that? I need some grub in my stomach!"

Jude glared at the man. "Can't you think about what that might mean for us?!"

Alvin grinned. "Of course I know what it means! But I'm more concerned with eating right now!"

Rowen sighed. "You aren't the least bit worried that Saber escaped into another dimension and we're still going to fight it?"

"Nope! Now let's get to Sharilton to eat something!"

As the group was eating at the inn in Sharilton, the news was on the T.V. near them.

"...and in other news, a train heading to Trigleph crashed this afternoon."

Milla's head perked up. "Did I just hear Trigleph?"

"Don't get worked up," Alvin told her. "It wasn't Trigleph. It was a crash _near_ Trigleph."

"Holly and Lancer would have boarded a train for Trigleph around then," Jude pointed out.

Alvin took another bite from his meal. "There's no guarentee that was the train they were on."

Gaius was staring at the T.V. "Alvin? You may want to see this."

The rest of the group looked up at the set. There was footage of two people, a girl with black hair and a man wearing blue and wielding a red spear, facing a girl with blonde hair and wearing a blue dress with silver armor and holding something invisible.

"...this coming to you from footage taken several minutes after the crash. The culprit appears to have been the blonde girl. The only two passengers of the train are confronting her."

Leia had her mouth open in shock and bits of her food fell out of it. Elize had soup in her spoon and had it raised up, about to put it into her mouth before she froze.

Alvin was blinking several times. "...Were those two who I think they were..?"

Leia just stared. "At least we know who was on the train..."

Milla narrowed her eyes. "Those two must be fighting Saber."

Ludger facepalmed. "It looks like bringing them into the Fractured Dimension would have been better!"

"It's moot now," Rowen said.

Alvin sighed. "Now we're going to bail 'em out?"

"Of course we are!" Jude replied.

"Yay..." Alvin mumbled.

* * *

As the dust from the attack cleared, Holly was on her left and hissing in pain. Several stinging cuts and burns were on the right side of her abdomen. Lancer had shoved her to the ground so the damage wouldn't be worse. He started jumping to the right, but that's when the attack cut him off from her line of sight.

She raised herself onto her hands, looking around for the demigod. She saw him on the ground on his right. He was breathing heavily and his red eyes were squeezed shut. His left arm and some of his left torso were a mess of blood and sizzling flesh. She crawled over and saw the bandaged wound from his Berserker form opened again and was oozing the crimson liquid, it pooling around him with the blood due to his wounds from Excalibur.

Holly saw Arturia walk slowly towards the two. "Lancer, wake up! We need to get out of here!"

Red eyes slowly opened. "Don't worry...'bout me..!" He struggled to his knees, blood pouring from his left arm. "I can...still fight..!" He started falling to his left, on Holly. The Master had both hands over his chest in order to hold him up, not noticing how much of his blood soaked into her clothes. The smell of burning flesh assaulted her nose.

Holly grit her teeth and turned her head, seeing Arturia right in front of her, swinging down Excalibur. "Back off!" She cast Wind Lance, cutting the surprised knight over the abdomen and making her skid back several meters. Before the woman could repair her armor, Holly left Lancer's side, left hand devouring the red gem. She sent mana to her feet for a boost of speed, appearing right in front of the king as she slashed sideways with blazing claws. Arturia quickly held Excalibur's blade up to block, but the hasty defense was too weak. The sword was knocked away and the claws broke through her chest armor, scoring her skin. The king screamed as the skin around the wound burned and blackened.

At that moment, the rest of the group came sliding down the edge of the cliff. Milla looked over. "There they are!"

Holly grit her teeth as she grabbed Arturia's right hand in her left, flipping the king to her side and slamming her into the ground. "About time, guys! I'll handle Saber and the rest of you take care of Lancer!"

"You'll take care of Saber?!" Jude demanded. He started to run forward, but Gaius stopped him. "Gaius?! What are you- -"

"Just look," Gaius replied. Holly let go of Saber's right hand and punched her further into the ground, burning away some blonde hair. Jude sighed in defeat and went over to Lancer to tend to his wounds.

Holly grabbed Saber's chest armor and hurled the knight several meters away. She crawled to her hands and knees, blood covering most of her dress and some of her armor. When she opened her mouth, blood was dripping from it. She shakily looked up, seeing Holly towering over her. She grabbed the blonde's head with her left hand and lifted her off the ground. Arturia was thrashing around, feeling the flames burn into her scalp.

She looked at the helpless knight evenly. "Let me tell you something: no one hurts my Servant and lives."

Her hand squeezed and a loud crack resounded. Arturia went limp, blood running down her head. She vanished into blue mana. Holly lowered her hand and it disappeared beneath the bandages as the flames vanished.

She turned around to face the others and they were all staring at her. "What?"

Alvin let out a nervous chuckle. "And here I thought _Lancer_ would be the most brutal out of all of us!"

Holly looked at him. "Hey, at least all the Servants are gone!"

"Yeah...but that was scary," Elize said.

"I'm adding you to the list of people I never want to mess with, right next to 'Karla when she's angry'," Gaius said.

Holly sighed. "At least all that's left are the six Masters and the Holy Grail."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 8 chapters left! There are still plenty of major events such as other Alters and more.


	18. King Arthur's Shadow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not being able to walk seems to be giving me a lot of time on my hands. God, I can't WAIT for the aftermath of my brain injury to be over!
> 
> I predict, judging by how often I release each chapter, for the final chapter to be released December 21.

On the way back to Trigleph, Holly carried an unconscious Lancer. His old wounds as well as his left arm and some of his left side were covered in bandages. Ludger had called Vera and told her that all of the other Servants have been killed. Now she was searching for the Masters. But it would be harder since they didn't give off the same feel as the Servants.

When the group was eating in Ludger's apartment (Lancer was awake by then and his injuries should be all healed within a couple days thanks to a Servant's rapid healing) Ludger's GHS went off.

Holly smacked her head into the table. "I swear, I'm going to _rip Vera apart!_ "

Ludger laughed nervously and answered his phone. Vera's voice on the other end sounded slightly pissed.

"I thought you said that Saber was killed."

"She was. What's going on?"

Vera's sigh could be heard over the line. "Put your GHS on speaker. I need to talk to Holly and Lancer."

Ludger pulled the phone away from his ear and pushed a button before setting the cell phone on the table. "Vera needs to speak to the both of you."

Holly cocked her head. "What about?"

"I don't know, but I'm guessing it has something to do with Saber."

Vera's voice sounded much louder. "Yes, and I need to ask you both something. Can Servants come back to life?"

"Well, they can if they're summoned again," Lancer replied. "But they can't appear again in the same War. Why're ya askin'?"

"I just ran a scan over several Fractured Dimensions looking for abnormalities in the mana that may hint to a Master, but it picked up Saber's mana signature."

"Are you sure there wasn't some kind of mistake in the reading?" Holly asked.

"I thought at first there may have been, but I repeated the scan several times and it kept coming up with the same thing."

Lancer growled. "I can't think of how Saber was able to come back to life, but if she did we'll just kill her again."

"Very good. I want an explanation for this as well. The rift to that Fractured Dimension is at the Dimensional Rift at the end of Rusalle Highroad. I'll send over the coordinates. Please take action right away." She hung up and Ludger put the GHS away after receiving the coordinates.

Alvin leaned back in his chair. "Any ideas about what's going on?"

Milla shook her head. "I'm not sure myself."

"I'm afraid I'm in the dark on this one as well," Muzet added.

Lancer had his right hand on his chin. The other hurt too much to move. It felt like he was being jabbed with thousands of red-hot needles. "This is just a guess, but what if it's an Alter?"

"That would make sense," Holly agreed.

"But why hasn't it been detected before?" Leia asked.

"The mana Saber was giving off may have been interfering with the detection of the other, until Holly killed her," Milla pointed out.

Ludger got up from his chair. "Well, we won't know until we check it out ourselves."

* * *

The group entered the rift at the entrance to the Dimensional Rift. The slightly darker surroundings told them they were in the Fractured Dimension.

Jude looked at Holly and Lancer. "Sense Saber?"

Lancer was baring his fangs. "Yeah, I feel her loud an' clear!"

Holly felt as if her hair was standing on end. "She's definitely close by."

"If she's an Alter, she will most likely be the divergence catalyst," Ludger said. They walked out onto the large cliff-edge area.

"Did she get the Holy Grail and become an Alter then?" Gaius asked.

Holly growled. "Most likely. She must've killed Lancer then. And probably me too."

"What makes you say that?" Elize asked while cocking her head.

"It's highly unlikely she got to him without first getting through me."

Alvin crossed his arms. "You must really love him, don'tcha?"

"Of course I do. And that's why I don't plan on losing him," Holly replied. Jude and Milla exchanged glances right then.

Alvin smiled. "It's like with Jude and Milla. The kid fell into a depression a year ago after Milla's death." Leia unconsciously rubbed the scar on her shoulder from Alvin's gunshot.

Holly's gaze went soft. "I feel the same about Lancer. I won't let even death keep us apart. But I'll kill any Servant that tries to kill him."

Lancer growled. "Mention Servants, an' look what shows up!"

The group reacted in time, jumping to either side of a dark wave of energy that looked like Demon Fang. Holly, Jude, Leia, Gaius, Rowen, and Muzet jumped to the right while everyone else jumped to the left. They all got their weapons out and Holly's demon hand appeared.

Alvin and Gaius Linked, going to the middle of the burnt earth where the attack had skimmed the ground and faced the tree near the left edge of the cliff. "Demonic Chaos!"

The attack made the tree shudder violently. A woman came out from behind the trunk and faced the group. She had the same hair as Saber, but she was wearing black armor with red lines. She had a matching visor over her eyes. The sword she held was shaped like Excalibur, except it was black.

Lancer grinned, getting a high from the prospect of battle. "Yup, she's an Alter alright."

The Alter slashed her sword through the air, firing another dark blast of energy at the left group. Milla ran in front of them and conjured a weak mana shield in the shape of a hexagon in front of her outstretched hand. The shield absorbed the attack with several cracks over the surface. Milla pulled her hand back and the shield vanished. "Holly, since you and Lancer fought Saber earlier today, what are normally her attacks?"

"She mainly attacks with her sword. She has magically-woven armor that can be pierced, but it's hard to accomplish without a hard strike. She can also charge mana into her sword and can release it in a giant beam that injures and burns, which is the Noble Phantasm, Excalibur, an A++ Noble Phantasm."

"Though since this is an Alter, some attacks, like the one she just used, may be different from when she's sane," Lancer added.

Ludger and Arturia ran at each other, clashing swords before jumping away. As soon as she landed, the king swung her sword an released the dark energy at the young man. Muzet threw a ball of gravity in front of the agent so both attacks would cancel each other out.

Gaius looked over at the black-haired mage. "About how long would you say Saber has to charge Excalibur?"

"About 7-8 seconds," the woman answered. Alvin jumped to the side as the Alter charged at him, swinging her dark sword sideways trying to cut the ex-mercenary in two. As he was going through the air, he shot four times at the Alter. The dark knight used the flat of Excalibur to block the bullets.

"Hey, Holly? How about you go berserk again and kill the Alter?" he suggested as he landed.

Holly's face went red with anger and she stomped one foot, fist being pumped near her sides. "I did NOT go berserk!"

Leia sweatdropped. "You kinda did..."

Lancer grinned as he blocked Saber's downward slash with the shaft of his spear. Right before he had fallen unconscious, he saw what Holly did. "I ya were a Servant, ya'd fall into the Berserker class. I don't think ya've ever scared me more than how riled up ya were durin' the last fight."

"Well _sorry_ for trying to save you from you getting cut in two by Saber!" Holly shouted. Lancer chuckled and shoved the Alter away with his weapon.

"Like I've said, yer cute when ya get angry."

Rowen threw the three daggers at Arturia. The knight blocked them all, but they landed in the ground around her in a triangle shape. White light filled that space, freezing her. She grunted, her voice sounding like one person and an echo at the same time. Leia ran at the Alter, staff over her head so she could bring it down and smash the king's skull. Her body jerked and the light vanished. Rowen recoiled.

"She broke through it!"

Saber brought Excalibur up and sideways, edge stopping the staff as it came down. The Alter smirked and pressed the palm of her hand into Leia's abdomen. A burst of dark energy came from the palm and sent Leia flying backwards. In that instant, Lancer ran at the dark woman, thrusting at her head with Gae Bolg. Arturia only reacted enough to move her head slightly to her left. The spear cut a thin line across the side of her head, taking off some strands of hair. The attack also cracked the side of the visor on her right and broke it off, revealing one yellow eye.

She growled and slashed down with her sword. Lancer reacted fast enough and jumped back, the tip of the dark blade just grazing him and slicing a little line on the cloth over the top part of his chest. The attack launched a dark energy beam, but Gaius jumped in front of it and blocked it with his katana. At the same time, Muzet snuck up behind the Alter and was about to use Spire Throw. Arturia evaded in time and cut the assaulting hair with her sword.

 _'Jerk! It took me a good amount of time to grow that hair!'_ The rest was just fine, but the hair she uses in her artes was shortened.

"Dark Gaze!"

Of course the Alter easily blocked Elize's spell, but that was to distract the enemy from Holly as the woman jumped at the dark king.

"Take this, bitch!"

The Alter looked up, but it was too late. Holy landed on her, barreling the knight over so the mage was on her head, demon hand over the Alter's face. The enemy grabbed the wrist with both hands. Holly grit her teeth, surprised by the strength in her arms and struggling to keep on the king. The Alter threw the mage to her left. Holly, trying to stay on, was gripping the rest of the visor in an attempt not to be thrown off. As she was, the rest of the visor came off in her hand. The Alter stood, glaring at the woman with both yellow eyes.

Excalibur was swung, but Lancer ran in front of Holly and blocked the dark energy with the demonic spear. Milla ran at the Alter's right, sword sideways and pointed slightly down so the tip passed right over the ground. The spirit swung the sword when she was near the enemy. The Alter held up her left armored arm and to the side, the blade biting into her skin. Saber grit her teeth and nudged the sword away. She faced the spirit and stuck her own sword into the ground. Using her right hand, she unleashed the blast of darkness and knocked the blonde back, sword still stuck in the Alter's arm. She winced as she yanked the blade out of her arm, blood splashing out after it. Gaius charged at the Alter, swinging down with his katana. The Alter blocked with Milla's sword in her left hand, feet digging into the earth, Due to wielding it in her off-hand, the blade she was using was being pushed down. She grabbed Excalibur's handle in her right hand and swung it at the king. He tried jumping back, but there was now a deep cut over his abdomen, blood hitting the ground as he moved back. Muzet flew at Saber, a Binding Sphere in one hand. The Alter looked up, seeing the Great Spirit. She threw Milla's sword, tip first, at the woman. It cut through Binding Sphere, nullifying it, and dug deeply into Muzet's palm. The spirit flew back near the others, gripping her right hand as blood was dripping out of it.

Saber brought Excalibur sideways and by her right side. Dark energy covered it, forming a cross. She was facing Holly, who had Lancer in front of her. She wanted to pay the mage back for ripping off her visor.

Lancer's eyes widened as he sensed the same thing from the sane Saber's Noble phantasm. he turned his head to the others. "It's Excalibur!" Holly was already casting.

"We have to attack her now!" Gaius exclaimed. But the Alter finished charging sooner than her sane counterpart.

She hefted the sword up. "Ex...calibur!" she shouted as the sword hit the ground, a dark beam of energy heading towards Holly and Lancer.

Holly had finished casting. "Force Field!" The green dome surrounded the two. The energy from Excalibur slammed into it. Holly winced. "Ugh, this spell won't hold for long."

Lancer grabbed his Master with his right hand and jumped to his left with her as the shield broke. The two were on the ground as the energy whizzed by their right, the explosion going off out from the edge of the cliff and parting the clouds.

Lancer groaned as the pain from hitting the ground on his left arm caught up to him. Alter Saber was walking over to them, sword tip scraping the ground. Leia ran up behind her and wrapped the shaft of her staff over Saber's neck, grabbing onto either end with both hands. The dark knight gagged and reached one hand back, punching the reporter back and freeing the Alter.

Jude was up next. he appeared right in front of the Alter and threw a punch at her armored chest. She held the flat of Excalibur in front of her chest to absorb the blow, but she was still sent flying back, where Alvin was waiting with his gun. He shot at the Alter's back, ripping several holes into her. She screamed and spun around, swinging her sword. The wave of dark energy knocked the man away. Gaius and Milla ran at either side of the Alter, swinging their swords. They both cut through the armor and left two deep, large gashes over her hips.

The group, minus Holly and Lancer, ran at Alter Saber, all brandishing their weapons. The Alter spun in a full circle, bringing her sword with her and the force it put in the air pushed everyone away.

Holly jumped at the dark knight and she turned around in shock. The demon hand grabbed her throat ass the Alter Servant was pushed to the ground.

"Ludger, now! While I'm holding her down!" she shouted. The man got up and transformed into his chromatus. He stabbed the Alter in the abdomen, behind Holly, and pulled out the catalyst. In a few seconds, the world shattered.

* * *

Back in Trigleph, it was night and everyone went into their own apartments. Holly plopped down in her bed. Lancer lay on her right next to her in a loose t-shirt and sweatpants. To prevent discomfort in his left arm, he was going to sleep with it over the side of the bed.

"I am bushed!" Holly exclaimed. "Talk about a long day! Three Fractured Dimensions in a row! If Vera calls again, I will storm over to Spirius and _tear her to shreds_!" She glanced over herself and her Servant. "We go pretty torn up, didn't we?"

Lancer grinned. "Yeah, an' my left arm hurts like hell."

"Not surprising. It got caught in Excalibur. You're lucky you didn't lose it completely."

"Yeah, but now I hafta deal with this pain."

Holly curled into the right side of his chest. "At least you're alive, and that's all that matters to me."

Lancer frowned. "Since I'm the only Servant left, the Holy Grail has appeared. We don't have much time left 'fore I return to the Throne of the Heroes."

Holly smiled. "Don't worry; I have a plan." She frowned and looked into his red eyes. "Are you sure you want to stay in this world?"

He hugged her tightly, his breath ghosting through her hair as he rested his chin into it. "I'm sure. I wanna stay with ya fer as long as possible."

She returned the hug, nuzzling into his neck. "I'm gald, because I always want to be with you. I love you so much."

"An' ya know I do as well. So if ya have a plan to keep me from vanishin', can't ya use the method now?"

"After all the fighting is over," Holly told him.

"An' why's that?" he asked.

"'Cause of what it involves. I'm not going to tell you yet, because you won't like it at first."

"If I won't like it, ya shouldn't do it."

"Just trust me. This is the only way to keep you around."

Lancer sighed. "Fine, I trust ya."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I came up with it at like chapter 1. I'll give you all a hint: it's something Holly's done before. And part of it involves her Command Seals, which is why I haven't been having her use them. Can you guess what it is?


	19. King of Heroes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is high-T rating for F-bombs dropped. But you would drop them too if someone woke you up in a way that's amusing to the prankster and nearly gives you a heart attack.
> 
> And yes, the arrogant dickheaded bastard is in this. I REALLY don't like him. He's so full of himself. I bet he's the kind of person who can't go five seconds without looking at himself in a mirror.

The next morning, Alvin snuck into Holly and Lancer's apartment room. Ludger had called and told the group to meet in his room. Holly wouldn't answer her GHS, so Alvin was sent out to get her ass moving. Ever since the mage had summoned Lancer, she didn't lock her apartment door while she was in it. That's because any intruders weren't likely to get out alive as long as the demigod was with her.

Alvin grinned when he saw the two residents were still asleep. Lancer's hair was out of the golden clasp and the long blue strands were all sprawled out on the pillow. He had both arms stretched all the way out on either side of his body so it looked like he was laying on his back like an eagle. The covers were all bunched up, the top end at his stomach. One foot was hanging over the edge of the mattress and he was sawing logs loudly. Holly was curled up almost into a ball on her left side and facing the knight, both hands on her Servant's chest. Her hair looked like a mess, all tangled like a rat's nest. She wasn't even under the covers, instead right on top of them. Lancer clearly pulled her in closer during the night, but now his arm was right against the top of her head, fingers just barely on her right shoulder.

Alvin snuck over to the bed and a pair of red, cat-like eyes opened. "Alvin? What're ya doin'?"

Alvin tried to hold in his laughter and held one finger over his lips. "Just be quiet for a sec, Lancer."

Lancer was just about to question the ex-mercenary on what he was planning to do. He got the answer to that question a second later. Alvin reached into his jacket and pulled out his gun. He had taken the bullets out and loaded a blank instead.

Lancer scratched his head. "I dunno if this is a very good idea. If ya wake Holly like that, she'll skin ya alive."

"Just shut up for now," Alvin whispered to the spearman.

Lancer sighed. "It's yer funeral."

Alvin let a toothy grin spread across his lips as he leaned the barrel of the gun close to Holly's right ear. Lancer sweatdropped and plugged his ears. His left arm was feeling better, but it still ached like crazy. Though Holly would likely turn Alvin into a bloody mess after the man's prank, the knight also wanted to see her get mad. She was cute like that, her face getting all red and her voice being high-pitched and shrill.

Alvin almost broke out laughing as he imagined Holly's reaction. He pulled the trigger and the bang woke the woman up. Or more accurately, she almost jumped out of her skin. The hairs all over her body felt to her like they just snapped up straight. Her red eyes shot open and she almost screamed. Her hands were on the pillows now and she held them so tight her visible knuckles turned white. Even though the other was covered in bandages, the knuckles on that hand also likely turned a different color as well. Her knees, which were bent, shot up and almost hit her in the gut. Her right ear was ringing, but she could still hear Alvin's hysterical laughter.

She shot up into a sitting position in an instant, glaring death at Alvin. "What the fuck was that all about?! You could have given me a heart attack!" She spun her head around to glare at Lancer behind her. "And why the hell didn't you wake me before this fucker did?!"

The Irish dick shrugged. "Sorry. Must've slipped my mind."

Holly held up a fist. "'Sorry' my ass! After I kill Alvin, you're next!"

* * *

About half an hour after that incident, the three were going to Ludger's place. Or more accurately, Holly was stopping down the hall with both fists at her sides and the two boys trailed behind her, both sporting bloody noses and a black eye for Alvin.

When Ludger's door slid open, the others were already gathered in the kitchen and living room. Leia's eyes went wide when she saw Alvin and Lancer. Both plopped down on the couch and sighed. "What in the world happened to the both of you?!"

"Holly happened," Alvin grumbled. Gaius crossed his arms.

"I take it you did something to make you deserve it?"

Holly growled. "That merchant asshole though it'd be funny to wake me up with a gun going off near my head. And my dickhead Servant didn't stop him!"

"It was funny, until you beat me up!" Alvin exclaimed.

Lancer had his forehead in his right hand. "God, I didn't even do anythin' an' I still got punched..."

Holly huffed, turning her head away sharply. Ludger sighed.

"Well, now that that's all cleared up, onto the reason you're all here."

Milla put a hand to her chin. "Another Fractured Dimension, I take it?"

Ludger nodded. "Yeah, our work isn't finished."

"Unless Masters are in it, Lancer and I don't need to go in since all the other Servants are dead," Holly said.

"The Holy Grail may be in it, though. That should be reason enough for you two to accompany the rest of us," Muzet pointed out.

"Yeah, you have a point. But Lancer and I should be on our own in them from now on."

"And why's that?" Rowen asked.

"With the other six Servants dead, there's no reason for you guys to tag along with us in Fractured Dimensions. We still need Ludger to get us back to the Prime Dimension so we'll keep tagging along with you guys until we end the War. But now that the main dangers are gone, we should hunt down the divergence catalyst and the Holy Grail on our own."

Gaius stared at the Master for a few seconds. "...Fine. But we'll help you two against any Alters. This condition is non-negotiable."

"Whatever," Holly sighed. "So, Ludger, where are we going?"

"The rift is in Fenmont, near the docks," he replied. Holly groaned.

"In Rieze Maxia? Gimme a break...Let's just get this done and over with."

* * *

The group entered the rift and appeared near the medical school. As agreed, the others left Holly and Lancer to themselves. Lancer grinned and wrapped an arm around Holly's shoulders.

"Remember the last time we were in a Fractured Dimension here?"

"Of course I do. The Fractured you proposed to Fractured me and then Archer showed up and totally kicked our asses."

"Yeeeah, that last part wasn't exactly a fun memory."

Holly let out a sigh as she saw the rest of the group disappear from sight, going to Fenmont's plaza. "I guess we should start asking around for the divergence catalyst."

"Wait, do ya feel that mana?"

Holly paused for a second. "Yeah, it's really faint, but I feel mana coming from the Arklund Quag."

"It might be the Holy Grail. We should check it out."

Holly sighed. "Fine, fine."

While the two were going through the marshy land, it started raining. Hard. Within moments, the two were drenched. Holly was looking behind her, checking her feet as she lifted them, and made a face.

"Jeez, this rain is creating mud and I'm getting it all over my boots! Man, we sure are going deep into here following the mana."

Lancer narrowed his eyes in thought. "At this rate, we may end up enterin' the next area."

Holly stuck out her tongue. "Not Fezebel Marsh! The land is all swampy and the ground feels squishy!"

"Well, we'll hafta go into it if that's where the mana source is."

"Yay..." she groaned.

* * *

Once the two entered the Marsh, they came to a drop that they had to jump down from. The mana was leading them to the center, getting stronger and stronger. Holly jumped down first, and then Lancer. His feet landed in a puddle and got dirty water all over his Master.

"Hey! Watch where your spraying muddy water!"

"Jeez, sorry! I didn't see that puddle there!" Lancer exclaimed. Holly turned around and walked down the path, grumbling.

"It's bad enough I'm soaking wet, but this hellhole is covered in puddles of brown water!" Lancer decided against opening his mouth. The mage was clearly not in the mood to be listening to him.

The two finally reached the end of the Marsh, where the mana was strongest. They looked around, but didn't see the golden cup that was the Holy Grail. Holly growled and tried wringing out her white shirt. It just got full of rain water again in no time.

"Don't tell me I got soaked, cold, and covered in mud for nothing!"

Lancer sighed. "We should go back." The two turned around, Holly griping non-stop. She suddenly choked on the blood that filled her mouth. She stumbled and started to fall forward. Lancer caught her in time. A sword that was piercing her back and went out her abdomen disappeared into gold dust.

"What was that?" she grunted. Lancer helped sit her on the ground while he checked the wound on her.

"I dunno, but I'm more worried 'bout ya, Master!"

Holly grit her teeth. "I said not to call me Master!"

Lancer sighed. "Yer fine if ya can yell at me like that."

A laugh broke through the clearing. The two looked to the center to see a man appear in the middle of it, gold mana cascading off of him. He had blonde hair and two red eyes with serpentine pupils like Lancer. He had gold earrings and gold armor. "Did you really call her 'Master' in my presence?"

Holly just blinked at the man a few times. "...Who the hell are you?"

The man narrowed his red eyes at her. "If you are really so ignorant that you can tell who I am, then you can die!"

Three golden holes appeared behind him. Each had a different sword sticking out, blade-first. They shot out at Holly. Lancer quickly moved in front of the mage and knocked the three swords away with Gae Bolg in his right hand.

The enemy smirked. "Ah, I know that spear. A cheap imitation of the real Gae Bolg in my possession."

Lancer growled. "Since ya claim to have the original Gae Bolg, ya must be Gilgamesh."

Holly cocked her head. "Who?"

Gilgamesh grinned. "So you're the mutt I have to kill? As if a lowly dog such as yourself is worthy of this world's first and true king!"

Lancer bared his fangs. "Ya just called me a dog, didn't ya?"

"And what's wrong with stating a fact?"

"The first king? Is he a Servant then?" Holly asked the warrior.

"Yeah, an Archer-class one. But I don't get how there can be a total of eight of us!"

"I was summoned for...insurance," the enemy Servant replied. More golden portals appeared. "However, a dog like you has survived the six others. You're at least worthy of a little of my attention."

Several weapons shot out at the Master and Servant. Lancer used his spear to block them all before running at Gilgamesh, spear at his side and ready to stab. Four spears shot out at him right then. Lancer blocked the first two, but was so taken by surprise that the last two went though his left thigh and in the elbow of his right arm. The enemy laughed and pulled out a sword. He swung it from the right and sideways at Lancer's neck. Holly's demon hand burst out of the bandages and she forced mana into her feet for a boost of speed. She ran around the left of her Servant and slammed her left hand down on the blade of the sword, stopping it when it was almost at its target. Two weapons shot out from two new golden portals on either side of the mage. The sunk into both of her shoulders, making her recoil a bit in pain. Gilgamesh turned toward her and slashed her from her right shoulder to the bottom of her chest with his sword. The force of the attack threw her back, smashing into a rock wall behind her.

"Holly!" Lancer exclaimed as he saw his Master fall to the ground. The bandages over her wound from his Berserker form were ripped open and her wounds were bleeding again, the rain making the blood that fell soak into the ground. Gilgamesh swung the sword at his neck again, but Lancer leaned back so the sword would cut the air over his head. He turned his body to the left, twisting his right arm around his body so it could hold it up. He suddenly planted both feet into Gilgamesh's armored chest and kicked off the surface of it, making him go back so he was closer to his Master. The air left Gilgamesh as the double kick made him go flying back and hit the earthen wall. Holly was casting a spirit arte.

Gilgamesh looked angry. The sword in his hand vanished into golden mana. "You dare to touch me, you filthy mongrel! I'll have your head for this!" Numerous amounts of the golden portals appeared, surrounding Lancer. Holly finished casting as the numerous weapons were fired.

"Force Field!" Several of the weapons bounced off the translucent green dome as soon as the hit it, landing in the muddy ground and vanishing into bits of golden mana. Holly grit her teeth as cracks appeared all over the dome as it tried to withstand the onslaught of swords, spears, axes, and many other types of weapons. She tried to focus her mana, but eventually the green dome shattered. Blood splashed out of Lancer as several weapons buried themselves in his back, shoulders, legs, and chest. The man fell to one knee and was panting hard, sticking the end of the cursed spear into the soft earth to support his blood-covered body. The weapons piercing him vanished and he glared at the king.

Gilgamesh laughed. "I see that you're still willing to fight, despite your current condition. You- -" He was cut off as a red spear shot right past the left side of his head and lodged itself it the wall right behind him, taking off some hair. Gilgamesh's eyes widened. Despite still being on one knee, Lancer raised his body up taller and had his right arm out.

"I finally surprised ya, douchebag!" Lancer exclaimed. His blood-covered lips were curled up in his signature cocky grin.

Gilgamesh glowered at him. "You'll regret that, mutt." A few portals appeared all around Lancer. "Enkidu!"

Several chains shot out of the golden holes and wrapped themselves around Lancer's limbs and neck, pulling him to his feet and holding him tight. Lancer grunted as he struggled to get free, but the chains wouldn't give even a little bit.

"The hell is this cheap trick?!" Lancer growled. Gilgamesh gave the smirk that made Holly want to go up to him and punch him hard in the face.

"These chains are special. The more god-like their victim, the harder their bind is. A demigod such as yourself has no hope of breaking free!" A single portal appeared right behind the king's right hand. He pulled out a weapon. "Despite your boldness, I'll be kind enough to let you die by this spear!"

Holly's eyes widened as she recognized the red spear Gilgamesh was holding. "That's..!"

Gilgamesh walked over to Lancer, raising Gae Bolg for the fatal strike. However, he left himself open. That's just what Holly needed. She cast Fireball, blasting the golden man away and she ran over to Lancer, her gaze fixed on the chains holding him. She raised her left hand and brought it down on one of the chains with as much strength as she could muster. It bent under the hand and the links strained, about to snap. One more slam and it broke, disappearing around the spearman's chest. It wouldn't be broken by the person it was holding, but it probably could from the outside.

As she worked on the next chain, Gilgamesh glared at her. "How dare you lay your filthy hands on Enkidu!" Multiple Gates appeared behind him. The blades of many different weapons appeared from the centers. As soon as Holly had only one chain left to go, the one around Lancer's right leg, the weapons fired at her turned back. Blood flew through the air and the mage fell to the ground.

* * *

The group was in the start of Fezebel Marsh. According to the information they gathered, a new plant was just discovered at it's end. The group deduced that it had to be the divergence catalyst.

"Man, this jacket cost me a pretty penny," Alvin complained as drops of mud from their walking hit the black-blue material.

Leia sighed. "Is that really all you care about?"

"Well of course! This was one of my best ones!"

"You can be really picky about what gets on some of your clothes, Alvin," Jude said.

"Clothes are how the world judges a man!" Alvin told him.

Elize's eyes went half-opened and she and Teepo sweatdropped. "I take it you dress like that to conceal the fact you're a back-stabbing, lying, traitor?" the little girl asked.

Alvin scratched his head. "Sheesh, harsh much?"

Teepo flew up to Alvin's face and had his eyes narrowed. "Don't blame us for doubting you, you big fat liar!"

Milla coughed. The rain was making her catch a cold. "Oh phlegm!"

Jude sweatdropped. "...She seems to be enjoying herself..."

Muzet looked over to the distance. "Did anyone else hear that?"

"No, I didn't hear anything, Muzet," Leia replied. "What is it?"

"If no one else heard it, it may have just been my imagination."

Gaius crossed his arms. "Your hearing is better than the rest of ours. You may have indeed heard something, but it's too distant for the rest of us to have heard it as well."

"Maybe your right," Muzet said. "There it is again!"

Ludger was scratching his head. "I can't hear anything. Can you tell where it's coming from, Muzet."

"Yes, in that direction." Muzet was pointing in the direction that leads deeper into the Marsh. A moment later, she swore she heard someone shout "Enkidu!"

"Since we're heading in that direction, we'll see the source of the noise," Alvin said.

Leia shuddered, though not from the cold like everyone thought. "Here's hoping it's not some big monster."

* * *

Blood sprayed the ground and was absorbed almost immediately. The crimson liquid that hit the leaves was dripping off them. Some landed in the water, turning it red. Most of it was dripping off Holly, pooling on the ground, hitting it faster than the rain could wash it away.

"L-Lancer...Why did you..?" the mage whimpered. The demigod had pushed her down to his left side the best he could with his left arm. Some of the weapons would still hit her, so he shielded her with his back at the enemy. He stumbled a bit from Enkidu still holding his right leg, but he still managed to shield his Master and allowed several of the blades to hit him instead, his blood flying all over. Crimson liquid ran down the right side of his face after a sword cut it.

The weapons in his back and the chain around his leg vanished. He fell down and Holly caught him, his chin on her left shoulder. His back was warm and wet from the blood that covered it. He chuckled dryly before having a coughing fit, blood flying from his mouth. "...I...did this...'cause...I won't...let ya...die...on my watch..."

Tears were falling from Holly's eyes and she wrapped both arms over the top of his neck, pulling the man in closer as she embraced him tightly. "You idiot! You shouldn't throw your life away in order to save mine!"

Lancer nuzzled her shoulder and allowed his tired eyes to close. "...Maybe...But my...body...instinctively rushes in...to...protect ya..."

Gilgamesh's cruel laughter shattered the momentary peace. "It looks like the mutt wishes to dies first!"

Holly growled. "Shut your mouth! Don't you dare mock him!"

Gilgamesh grinned. "Do you wish to die before he does? If so, I will grant you your wish." A single portal appeared over his head and a spear shot out, aiming for Holly's head.

Gaius rushed in front of her and used his katana to deflect the weapon. Gilgamesh jumped to his left as Milla ran at him from his right, swinging her sword. Muzet got his attention with Binding Sphere as Jude and Elize ran over to Holly and Lancer. Ludger scratched Gilgamesh's armor during Falling Snow as the Servant tried to dodge. Leia slammed her staff into the king's right side as she swung her staff in a sweeping motion, knocking him to the side.

Jude and Elize immediately began working on healing Lancer's back. He was absolutely drenched in blood and he was groaning.

"Please don't let him die!" Holly pleaded.

Jude was gritting his teeth. "His wounds aren't as bad as when we fought his Berserker form, but he's losing more blood from that time, and faster too!"

Rowen spat in frustration as the enemy deflected his knives with some weapons. Ludger grunted.

"We're at a disadvantage in this fight! We should retreat!"

Alvin made Gilgamesh jump back with Legacy. He spotted the new plant out of the corner of his eye. "Hurry up and destroy the divergence catalyst before it's too late for us!"

Gaius had to keep slashing at the Servant to keep him at bay while Ludger switched to his chromatus and stabbed the plant, removing and destroying the divergence catalyst.

* * *

When the world shattered, the group was still in Fezebel Marsh. But it had stopped raining. Alvin had both hands on his knees and let out a big sigh.

"I'm glad our fight with Goldy is done for now."

"Yeah, but who knows what dimension he ended up in," Ludger said. He glanced at Holly. She was on the ground next to Lancer as Jude and Elize worked to heal was covered in so much blood, to say nothing of the amount surrounding him.

"Please live, Lancer..." she said to him.

Ludger didn't notice Gaius as the king stood at his side. "Despite our assumptions, there seems to be at least one other Servant out there."

Milla had a hand to her chin. "It's strange. There are only supposed to be a total of seven Servants. It seems our fight isn't over just yet."


	20. A Rematch With Mr. Arrogance

A few days later, Holly and Lancer were feeling better. Many of the bandages around the man's left arm could be taken off. The group told Vera about Gilgamesh and she was busy scanning Fractured Dimensions for him. However, she ran into a problem. Several Fractured Dimensions carried mana signs of a Servant, making her job of finding the king a lot harder. She just called Ludger about a Fractured Dimension that should be checked out. She didn't know for sure if the mana detected in it was Gilgamesh's.

Everyone was in Ludger's apartment when he called everyone. Gaius sat on the couch, eyes closed and arms crossed. "Holly and Lancer should stay in the Prime Dimension."

"Why in the world should we?!" Holly demanded.

Gaius opened one magenta eye and looked at her. "If Gilgamesh is in this one, chances are good we'll have to fight him."

"We fought the other six Servants, Fractured Lancer, and Alters! What makes this one different?!"

"You two almost got killed," Gaius pointed out. "You both would have if we didn't show up when we did."

Holly grit her teeth in frustration. "Yeah, but we've managed to get out of a corner before!"

Gaius sighed. "In those really tough situations, we've had to bail you both out. Besides, this time both of you are injured. We'll see about next time, but for now you two should stay behind."

Lancer scratched the back of his head. "It's kinda our duty to fight the other Servants. Injuries shouldn't keep us out of a fight with one."

"Regardless, Gilgamesh tore both of you up last time. Besides, we don't know for certain whether he's in the Fractured Dimension or not."

Holly huffed and crossed her arms. "Even if we stay behind, we could still encounter him like we did with Saber."

"I've already taken that into consideration, which is why you two won't be alone."

Milla leaned against the wall behind her. "We talked about this while you two were resting in Holly's room."

Holly sighed. "So basically, some of you will be babysitting us."

Gaius nodded. "I'm glad you understand."

Holly glared at him. "Seriously?! You couldn't tell from the tone of my voice that I'm not thrilled?!"

"Hey, it kinda sucks as well for those of us staying behind," Alvin said.

Holly crossed her arms. "So who's staying with us?"

Gaius uncrossed his arms and had both eyes opened. "As agreed, Jude, Muzet, Leia, and myself will stay behind while everyone else destroys the Fractured Dimension."

Ludger sighed. "So then, I guess the rest of us are off." He and the rest were going out the door.

Alvin stopped in the doorway and smiled cheekily, winking at Holly, making her want to go over and punch him. "Have fu-un!" He went out the door and it slid shut before the mage could rip him a new one.

Leia was pumping her fists in the air. "Even though we six aren't going in the Fractured Dimension, that doesn't mean we still can't have fun!"

Gaius stood up. "Do whatever you want. My job is to monitor those two."

Jude had his hands behind his back shyly. "Don't mind me. I'll go along with whatever the rest of you decide."

"I'll just do whatever Holly decides," Lancer said.

Muzet had one hand on her chin. "Then I guess it's just up to us girls. What should we all do?"

"Maybe shop?" Holly suggested. Muzet glanced over at Gaius. _'I wonder if we could trick him into wearing a pink dress?'_

"How about we test our skills at the Xian Du Colosseum?" Leia asked.

Jude gave a nervous laugh. "You always were into those kinds of competitions, weren't you Leia?"

Leia huffed. "Well of _course_ I am! I need to let go of some stress sometimes!"

Holly shrugged. "Eh, count me in. I feel like beating the shit out of some monsters anyway. I take it you want in too, Lancer?"

Lancer had a toothy grin. "Ya already know I do!"

"I guess I'll join in as well," Gaius said.

Jude paled. "...All of you scare me..."

* * *

On the ship from Marksburg to Lakutum Seahaven, Jude glanced at Lancer.

"The battles are pretty intense, and there isn't any time to rest to heal injuries. Will you still be okay even with your left arm as it is?"

"Nah, I'll still be fine. 'Sides, I'm used to fightin' with a handicap," Lancer replied.

"I assume we'll do Party Mode, but what rank?" Muzet asked.

"We'll do Normal," Leia told her. "If that seems too easy, we'll do Elite."

"Since there are six of us, we could do two Party Modes with three of us each, or one Party Mode with four and one Tag Mode," Holly added.

"I assume that if we do the latter, you and Lancer will be the two in Tag Mode?" Gaius asked.

"Of course we will! I always want to be with my Master in fights!" Lancer exclaimed.

Muzet leaned over to Holly so she could whisper in the woman's ear. "Why didn't you yell at him for calling you 'Master'?"

Holly sighed. "He wasn't saying it to me, and he didn't use that just to rile me up. By the way, how much money do we have?"

Leia looked into her bag. "The others took most of it to restock on items, but there's enough for several runs at Elite Mode. More, if we win enough times and get the prize money."

Jude glanced at the reporter. "Don't even _think_ of blowing the rest on gambling!"

Leia looked at Jude, shocked. "Why would you think I'd do that?!"

Jude sweatdropped. "You're a gambling addict, that's why."

Holly took a sidelong look at Gaius. "Hey, won't it turn quite a few heads if _he_ enters?"

Gaius crossed his arms. "If King Gaius entered, there would indeed be an issue. But there shouldn't be a problem if the commoner Erston Outway participates."

Holly sweatdropped. "Like no one will recognize Rieze Maxia's king in a trenchcoat..."

Jude facepalmed. "Every time he enters, we get _plenty_ of stares..."

Gaius looked at both of them. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

"Nothing, but your face kinda gives you away," Holly replied.

Gaius pointed a finger at Lancer. "What about him?! He hasn't been seen in either world until recently!"

"Okay, no one really pays any attention to commoners they see on the streets," Holly pointed out. "It's different for you since you're a huge political figure."

"Well _some_ people believe my made-up stories," Gaius argued.

Holly sighed. She was getting tired of explaining this to him. "Fine, whatever! If those idiots don't doubt you then fine!"

* * *

In the last area of Lakutum Highroad, Holly looked around. "Do you feel that, Lancer?"

"Now that ya mention it, yeah."

Gaius looked at the two. "What do you feel?"

"I don't feel anything out of the ordinary," Muzet pointed out.

"Only Masters and Servants can sense Grail-related mana at this level," Holly explained.

"You two sense mana?" Jude asked.

"Yeah, it's getting stronger," Holly replied.

"I feel it now," Muzet said.

"What do you mean by 'Grail-related'?" Leia asked.

Lancer bared his fangs and summoned Gae Bolg in his right hand, feeling the source of the mana get closer. "Either the Holy Grail or Servants," he answered. "It must be the latter since whatever it is is headin' toward us. It must've sensed my mana!"

Leia got out her staff. "So it's most likely Gilgamesh then?"

"Normally, all Servants give out a little mana so that others have to be pretty close to sense them. They can expand the radius in which they can sense other Servants, but they give off far more mana as a result, giving them away and eliminating any chance of an ambush," Holly explained. Her demonic hand burst from the bandages. "Only Assassin Servants can completely conceal their mana." The others went into fighting positions, Gaius and Jude getting out their weapons.

Lancer looked around. He swore he felt another mana source just outside of where Muzet could even sense it. It was gone so quickly that he wondered if he imagined it. Holly didn't seem to notice so he just wrote it off.

Golden mana appeared several meters ahead of the six and cascaded, revealing the golden man.

Holly smirked. "And the royal pain finally showed himself."

Gilgamesh glared at her. "You need to learn to watch your tongue around your king!"

"She's pretty rude to me at times, but it doesn't bother me all that much," Gaius said.

Gilgamesh switched his glare to the man. "You claim to be a king as well, mongrel?"

"So what if he does? It's not like you're the only one who received the title of king," Jude said.

Gilgamesh only acknowledged him with a glance out of the corners of his eyes. "Many claim to be kings, but the one true king is and always will be me!" A Gate appeared and an ax flew out of it at the teen. Jude brought both arms up. The metal of his bracers deflected the weapon, but it forced him to skid back a couple meters. Gaius ran at the other king, swinging his katana down at the juncture between the enemy's neck and right shoulder. Gilgamesh jumped to the side, the katana's blade smashing into the earth. Two more golden circles appeared above Gilgamesh and two swords shot out, going through both of Gaius' legs and holding him down. The two portals vanished and one appeared behind Gilgamesh, on his right side. He reached his hand back and grabbed the handle of a sword before pulling it out. The portal vanished and Gilgamesh walked over to Gaius, raising the sword up.

He had to jump back as Holly suddenly came at him from his left, slashing down with her left hand. As soon as the man landed, he turned his head to his left and had to jump to the right as Lancer charged at him, swinging Gae Bolg. A thin scratch appeared over Gilgamesh's armor over his chest. When he landed, he looked up and jumped back, avoiding the ball of gravity Muzet hurled at him. Leia ran over to Gaius and pulled out the swords pinning his legs down. As soon as she did, they vanished into gold flecks of mana.

Gilgamesh ducked just as Jude ran at him head-on, throwing a punch at the king's head. He kicked Jude back, still ducking. As Jude landed hard in the dirt, several Gates appeared over the teen. As the weapons fired, Leia appeared next to Jude, twirling her staff to knock them away. Several got through and gouged them both.

Holly and Lancer worked together, slashing at the Servant with Gae Bolg and the demonic left hand, driving him back. While they were getting his attention, Gaius ran at the right of Gilgamesh and used Dragon Swarm. Gilgamesh stumbles back with several bleeding wounds. Several Gates appeared behind him and weapons shot out. Gaius used his katana to defend himself and Lancer used his demonic spear to protect Holly and himself. The force of the onslaught made Gaius and Lancer skid back, though the latter ran into Holly and forced her back as well. The entire time, Muzet was hanging back so she wouldn't be interrupted while casting. She flew up, making Gilgamesh's eyes follow her.

"Sunburst!" she shouted. As she threw down the giant ball of fire, multiple golden Gates showed up behind the king. They all fired their weapons, making the ball of fire burst in mid-air. Smoke obscured her sight of the Servant, so she didn't see the ax thrown at her until it whizzed over her left shoulder, making blood fly as it was cut deeply. She winced and gripped the wound, allowing Gilgamesh to jump at her, sword in his right hand and sliced the spirit from her left shoulder down to her right hip. As she fell, Gilgamesh came down on the spot she was hovering over. He quickly turned to his left, bringing the blade of his sword up as it met Gaius' katana. Gaius grit his teeth and Gilgamesh smirked as sparks flew from their blades grinding against one another.

Gilgamesh's red eyes flew to the left and right side as Leia and Jude charged at him. Two new Gates appeared in front of both of the king's shoulders and a spear was fired from each of them, impaling both teens through the abdomen and made them both hit the ground face-first. Holly ran forward, behind Gaius, and jumped over him, bringing her left hand down. A Gate appeared behind Gilgamesh, on his left side. He reached into it and pulled out a second sword. The golden man raised it over his head, making the red-black claws meet metal. He used it to force the mage back so she fell to the ground behind Gaius and then kicked the other king back. Holly ducked her head as the black-haired man's body flew over her.

Gilgamesh smirked and several Gates appeared over his head, all launching several types of blades at the Master and the Rieze Maxian king. Muzet, still on the ground, cast Air Pressure, making the weapons flying at Gaius to go off-trajectory. Lancer moved in front of Holly and used Gae Bolg to deflect all the ones flying at her.

The golden man grit his teeth in frustration. "The Gates of Babylon don't seem to be enough to even put you filthy beasts down."

Lancer grinned. "Seems we 'filthy beasts' are too much fer even ya now!"

"Don't get too full of yourself, dog!"

"Pot calling the kettle black?" Holly shouted.

Gilgamesh squeezed his eyes shut. "You mongrels aren't at all worthy of gazing on this blade, but it seems that I have to use it." Both swords vanished from his hands and a single Gate appeared over his right hand as he raised it up even with his chest. "Rejoice, curs. You all get to behold a weapon given to this world's true king." The Gate vanished and in his hand was what looked to be a golden key. He raised it up and a net of red lines came up from it and into the sky.

Holly took a step back. "I'm getting a bad feeling..."

Even Gaius had a feeling that something was about to go down. He helped Jude, Leia, and Muzet behind a rock so they could tend to their wounds. He hadn't noticed it before, but the intense mana Lancer and Gilgamesh were giving off must be scaring away the monsters.

Gaius ran back and stood by Holly and Lancer just as the red lines descended. The sword disappeared into a red orb floating over Gilgamesh's right hand. He grabbed something inside it and the orb lifted and vanished, revealing a new sword in his hand. The handle was gold, but the blade looked like a black drill bit divided into three sections and covered in red lines.

Holly raised an eyebrow. "The hell is that thing?"

Gilgamesh laughed darkly. "Of course mongrels like all of you wouldn't recognize Ea. Only those worthy of my full attention are privileged to gaze upon its glory, but you lowly animals have forced me to use it. Consider yourselves fortunate. This weapon will end your pathetic lives."

Holly broke into a full sprint at him, left hand lowered so she could slash up, claws just over the ground. "I don't give a shit how special you think Ea is! We'll still send you to hell!"

Gilgamesh frowned at her. "Ignorant mongrel..!" Each section spun in a different direction from the next. The middle spun clockwise while the top and bottom sections spun counterclockwise, red energy bursting out from the divide between each section and from the base of the blade. Holly was right in front of the king when he lowered the sword down, even with his middle. "Enuma Elish!"

The woman was suddenly blown back by strong winds that cut her entire body, drawing blood. She had to cover her face with both hands, her left over her right, and the demon hand getting sliced up, blood dripping from the numerous cuts over it. Lancer tried to catch her, but the force even knocked him onto his back as the mage slammed into his chest, knocking the wind out of him.

Gaius ran at the enemy Servant, swinging his katana sideways. Gilgamesh smirked as he knocked it to the side with Ea. Without missing a beat, the demigod brought his sword back and plunged it into Gaius' right shoulder. The man grit his teeth as he tried to bite back a cry of pain. His katana dropped from his right hands and the spinning sections were tearing at his muscles. He jumped back, freeing his shoulder as blood gushed out of the wound. The entire right arm hung limply at his side and he went down onto one knee, taking out a cloth from his bag and pressing it to the wound to staunch the blood.

At the same moment Gaius flew back, Holly got off Lancer as the man got up. He charged at the enemy at blinding speeds. He reappeared in front of Gilgamesh, Gae Bolg being blocked by Ea. The spear had been swung diagonally to the left. Gilgamesh held Ea to his left and stopped the lance. Both demigods were staring the other down, Lancer baring his fangs and Gilgamesh with a smug grin on his face. Two Gates of Babylon appeared behind Gilgamesh and two swords shot out, punching through the shoulder plates on Lancer and sinking into flesh. He winced slightly, letting up the pressure a little. That was all Gilgamesh needed to send the spearman flying back with a strong gust of wind. He fell on the ground on his back right in front of Holly. The bandages over his left arm had been blown off, revealing scarred and healing skin below the torn blue sleeve. The swords in his shoulders vanished, allowing his blood to pour out.

He glanced forward as Holly suddenly left his side, running at Gilgamesh. She forced mana into her feet for a boost of speed, reaching him before he could use Ea to blow her back. Gilgamesh jumped back as Holly slashed down with her left hand, claws piercing the armor over his left shoulder and making blood spring out.

He grit his teeth and the three sections spun as he thrust it forward. "Enuma Elish!"

"Holly!" Lancer exclaimed as a red energy beam slammed into her chest, making her fly back and crash into the wall behind them. As she fell to the ground, blood stained her entire front and she coughed up much of the liquid. Lancer turned his head to look at Gilgamesh and snarled. His grip over his demonic spear tightened as he got up and rushed at the golden king. Gilgamesh smirked and a Gate appeared, an ax sinking into the knight's left leg. He stumbled but kept running.

A sword flew out next, flying past the warrior as it cut his left arm. He grunted in pain, squeezing his eyes shut. When he opened them a second later, Gilgamesh had ran up to him. He ducked as Ea was swung at his head. Right after, he kicked the king back.

"Filthy mutt!" Gilgamesh roared as Lancer charged at him, stabbing his spear forward at the king's chest. Instinct made Gilgamesh stab Ea toward the knight. Blood flew through the air and all was silent.

Gaius grunted. He still had the now blood-soaked cloth over the hole in his shoulder. "Is it over now?" Jude, Leia, and Muzet appeared from behind the rock, bleeding stopped. Jude went over to Gaius and began casting healing artes on the man's wound. Muzet looked over to Gilgamesh and Lancer, seeing if the fighting was over.

Blood dripped from Gilgamesh's chin and from the red spear that pierced his armor and went out of his back, going through his heart and piercing his spiritual core.

"A lowly dog like you...can't have beaten me!" Gilgamesh exclaimed to the best of his ability as blood filled his throat. Pieces of golden mana flew of his body and floated up before they vanished. "I am...a king..! I can't be killed...by a mongrel...like you..!"

"Ya...just...were...asshole..." Lancer wheezed before lowering his head and opening his mouth, releasing blood, and a lot of it. Even though Gae Bolg pierced the enemy's heart, Gilgamesh's last thrust with Ea had gone through the left side of his chest, the spinning sections tearing up the lung it had gone through. Gilgamesh vanished into golden mana and Lancer fell forward, his legs losing the strength to hold his body up.

Holly tried getting up to rush over to him, but the intense pain in her bloodied chest made her stop and cringe. She had to settle for crawling on all fours to him. As she got to her Servant's side, Jude ran over to her.

"Keep still! I'll heal you!"

"Don't...worry about...me..." she panted. She swallowed a couple of gels to help dull the pain and stop a little of her bleeding. "Help...Lancer...please..." The spearman wheezed as he fought for breath. He continued to cough out the blood that filled his collapsed lung.

Jude helped the man onto his back and helped him eat a gel. "We'll have to take him to my dad, a professional doctor, in Leronde. Another gel later and with his Battle Continuation, and he should make it there," the teen said.

"Let's hurry to Leronde then!" Leia exclaimed. Gaius helped Holly carry Lancer. Out of the corner of the Master's eye, she swore she saw a dark figure turn around and run from where it had been sitting on the edge of the top of the rock wall, overlooking the battle against Gilgamesh. However, she just wrote it off as a trick her eyes were playing on her. Right now, Lancer was more important.


	21. Leronde

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really fucked up my laptop screen last night. Here's what happened:
> 
> It was Wednesday night and I was getting my laptop to do rehab after dinner so I can watch Netflix while I'm on the treadmill and bike. I reached for it on the ground near my bed and I lost my balance and over 130 lbs landed on top of it. It wasn't until after dinner that I saw over a quarter of the screen was cracked.
> 
> Thankfully, the laptop itself still works as if nothing had happened, but it isn't touch-screen anymore. I can still do everything on it, but I have to use the buttons on the keyboard and mouse pad. Until I get a new touch screen, updates may be longer since working on the laptop is now slowed since I can't simply select things by tapping on them.
> 
> Btw, the scene where Gaius meets Sonia hasn't happened yet.

On the boat from Lakutum to Leronde Seahaven, Holly wouldn't leave Lancer's side. Jude had called the rest of the group that went into the Fractured Dimension what had happened and they were taking Lancer to Derrick in Leronde.

When the ship came into port, Gaius helped Holly rush Lancer to the Mathis Clinic. As soon as they burst through the front door, Ellen, Jude's mom, was at the front desk. She had black hair and golden eyes just like Jude. She gasped when she saw just how bloodied everyone's clothes were.

"Oh my! What happened to all of you?!"

"No time, Mom! Is Dad here?! We need him to see this person Erston is helping to carry!" Jude exclaimed.

That's when Ellen saw Lancer. The bandages under the hole in the clothing over the man's left part of his chest were soaked in blood, some leaking from the cloth. "Derrick! This person needs treatment!"

A man with brown hair and glasses over brown eyes came running out of the room next to the front desk. "Jude?! What's going on here?!"

Holly was in full shut-the-hell-up-and-help-my-Servant mode. "We'll tell you later! Help Lancer, please!"

"R-Right! Lay him in the bed in the first room!" After doing what they were told, Ellen and Derrick came into the room a second later. "What injuries does he have?"

"Some, but the worst is the punctured lung!" Holly told him quickly.

Derrick went over to Lancer and glanced down at him. Taking off Lancer's top and the bandages over the wound in his chest, he inspected it closely. Though Holly was giving him mana, he could only retain enough just to keep his physical form due to the bleeding. However, he would need to get more stable soon. Otherwise, he'd lose all of that mana as well. "All of you leave. However, I will need to have a talk with the black-haired woman. Since I haven't seen either her or this man in your group before, I assume she's more acquainted with him."

Once everyone except for Holly left the room, the mage walked over to Dr. Mathis. "Do you need something from me?"

"Honey? What is it?" Ellen added.

Without looking up from Lancer, Derrick spoke to Holly. "He isn't human, is he?"

Holly's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you find out?!"

Derrick chuckled. "Well, you just told me."

Holly almost facepalmed. "Well _that_ was stupid of me..."

Derrick's face went serious again. "I just looked at his injury and I witnessed a minute piece of his torn skin repair itself right before my eyes. No regular human has regenerating power quite like this." Derrick looked at Holly. "You called him 'Lancer', but what's his real name?"

Ellen held the chart in her hands closer to her chest. "What do you mean, dear?"

Derrick didn't take his eyes off Holly. "I have a feeling 'Lancer' is just a name he goes by to hide something else."

Holly took a deep breath. Even someone who's figured out the name thing shouldn't know Lancer's true name. After all, he isn't involved in the Grail War at all. On the other hand, it wasn't likely he'd allow her to avoid the question altogether. She decided the spearman's birth name wasn't so well-known that it'd give away who he is. "...His name is Setanta."

Derrick glanced at Lancer again. "I take it that Setanta is some kind of spirit?"

"Yeah, whatever. The important thing is whether or not you can help him."

"We'll implant a spyrix into the injured lung so it can function properly while his healing ability repairs the damaged tissue. He'll have to stay here for a week or two for rehabilitation after the surgery. We'll begin right away, so you should leave so I'm not distracted during the procedure."

"...Fine, I'll leave. But let me know right away when you're finished," Holly said as she left the room and closed the door.

"I guess we should get this done," Ellen said. She turned her head and saw her husband staring at the door Holly left through. "Dear? Is something wrong?"

Derrick shook his head like he had just been pulled out of his thoughts. "It's nothing to worry about. Let's get this over with." As he went over to Lancer, he remembered glimpsing those red marks on the mage's right hand. He wondered if they had something to do with Setanta here.

* * *

"I guess we'll stay here while Lancer recovers," Leia said. The other four were in front of a wooden house after Holly came out of the clinic. It looked to be a some sort of business house; it had a sign over the door, several chairs and tables could be seen through an uncovered window, and through that window, menus hung on the wall could be seen.

Holly was scratching her head. "Uh, what _is_ this place?"

Leia turned to face the group with both of her hands on her hips and looked proud, grinning widely. "This is the best lodge in all of Leronde!"

"That's 'cause it's the _only_ lodge in Leronde. And it's her house, so it's pretty biased," Jude whispered so Leia couldn't hear him. She did anyway.

Leia turned her head away with a huff, pursing her lips with the bottom one out like she was pouting. "Oh, zip it, Jude! It's a quality inn!"

Jude slumped his shoulder in exhaustion of Leia's denials. "Yeah, with wonderfully early wake-up calls and your mother nagging at everyone to finish all of their food like she's their mom as well."

Holly giggled. "She sounds like a _load_ of fun. What about your dad?"

Jude answered. "Compared to Master Sonia, Warrick isn't very threatening."

"'Master' Sonia?" Holly questioned.

"She trained Leia and I in martial arts."

Leia shivered. "Yeah, so we both know how scary she can be when fighting."

Holly put one hand on her hip and cocked her head. "Is she really strong then?"

Jude smiled sheepishly. "No, more like she's completely invincible."

Holly looked shocked. "Yikes! She sounds like one person I never want to face!"

Leia closed her eyes and sighed. "Give her a staff and she'll beat the crap out of you in just one second! I swear, she should be classified as a monster!"

"Who're you calling a monster?!"

Leia looked completely startled and afraid for her life in that instant. Jude had his eyes wide and took several steps back in fear. Leia slowly turned her head around to look behind her. "...Hi, Mom..."

A lady with light brown hair and green eyes was standing right behind Leia. Clutched in her right hand was a broom with the top end on the ground. Holly blinked several times. "How did she do that?! I didn't even notice her until just now!"

Jude was sweating profusely. "...Like I said, she's a martial arts master..."

"Leia!" Sonia yelled. Leia flinched and squeezed her eyes shut, ready for her mom's full fury. "You should have called to tell me and your father that you were coming here!"

Muzet giggled. "I can see that Sonia's ferocity didn't rub off on Leia. This should be fun to watch!"

Gaius crossed his arms. "Mrs. Rolando, we came here because a situation came up where we have to stay here for a while. You see, one of our- -"

Sonia snapped her glare over to him. "You're dropping this off on me now?! And why are all of you covered in blood?!" Sonia fixed her gaze on Holly. "And who is she?! My daughter had better not be hanging out with the wrong crowd!"

Holly had both palms out and raised up right in front of her chest. She took a step back as Sonia to a step closer to the mage. "Whoa, settle down! I'm not- -"

Sonia smacked the woman over the top of the head with the end of the broom with the bristles. "You should watch your tongue, Missy! Never tell me to settle down!" Holly rubbed the sore spot on the top of her head and Muzet rolled back in the air, hands gripping her sides as she laughed heartily. Sonia glared at the spirit and raised the broom up threateningly with both hands. "Ya want some too?!"

Muzet stopped laughing and went fearfully behind Gaius. "No, I'm good..." _'Yikes! Her glare alone could kill!'_

Jude sighed and facepalmed. "Jeez, we sure didn't get off on the right foot with Master Sonia..."

"Jude!" The teen looked up suddenly. Sonia was staring right at him.

"Wh-What is it, M-Master S-S-Sonia..?" he stammered. It was clear that Sonia scares the shit out of Leia _and_ Jude. And probably the other three as well. Even Muzet looked genuinely scared for her life.

"I expect to hear a full explanation of what's going on inside!"

Jude stood at attention, looking scared. "Y-Yes ma'am!"

Sonia looked at Leia again. "Move, girl!" She grabbed Leia's right ear with her left hand and pulled the poor teen into the house.

"We should go in now or we're next!" Jude exclaimed before running through the open door into the lodge.

Holly scratched the back of her head. "Yeah, I happen to like my body parts where they are right now." She went into the lodge with that, leaving Gaius and Muzet.

"Gaius?" Muzet asked the king.

Gaius had his eyes closed and let out a deep breath. "...I'm adding Leia's mom to the list of people I never want to fight." Without another word, he went inside the house, Muzet following behind him in order to make him her shield.

Inside, after Sonia had thrown Leia forward, letting go of her ear, a man behind the front counter came over. He had brown hair and eyes. On top of his head was a black hat. He had brown hair running down the sides of his face that came together and over the mouth to form a mustache.

"What's wrong, Sonia? And what happened to Leia?!" he asked.

Jude stepped forward. "Warrick, we can explain..."

Sonia snapped her head around to stare daggers at him. "You'd better! You all can't just come here lookin' like that without telling us what happened first!"

Holly let out a heavy sigh. "...If Lancer were here, he'd call fighting her..."

Warrick glanced at the mage. "Who's she?"

"That's the same thing I asked!" Sonia exclaimed, looking at Holly. "I also asked if our idiot daughter has become friends with an undesirable!"

"It's nothing like that, Mom!" Leia protested. Sonia glared at her.

"The only thing I wanna hear from you is an answer to my question!"

Gaius was pinching the bridge of his nose. "Holly is our friend. We came to Leronde to drop off Lancer, her friend, at the clinic. Someone we encountered on our way to Xian Du gave us these wounds."

Sonia let out a deep breath. "I'm glad that's cleared up. Now all of you should get cleaned up!"

* * *

Upstairs, the five were divided into two rooms. The three girls were in the one to the right of the two boys' room. Holly slipped on a new shirt and had the other in the pile of blood-stained clothes that would have to be washed. The new one was a light blue t-shirt without the jacket. It was in the pile with the rest of the clothes that would need to be washed. Leia was in the room's bathroom getting changed. Since Muzet was using her own spiritual powers to have her dress materialized, she was able to make the bloodstains over it vanish. Leia came out of the bathroom, toweling off her hair as she tried to wash the grime from it.

"Your mom's a real piece of work, Leia," Holly said as she got a new pair of black shorts on. "By the way, why did she mistake me for some kind of thug on the streets?"

"Probably because you wear black. Plus, after that fight with Gilgamesh, you looked pretty trashy," Leia answered, rubbing the towel over her head quickly so it would get out all the water.

"Plus, your left arm gives off bad vibes," Muzet pointed out. "The feel it gives off is enough for anyone to have a bad first impression of you."

"Well you guys seem to be fine with me," Holly said.

Leia sat down on the edge of the second bed, facing the black-haired Master. The towel was around the back of the reporter's neck. "That's because we've gotten to know you and Lancer better. At first, when you first mentioned the Holy Grail War, I wondered what you had been smoking. But now that we're this far into it, the whole idea of the War doesn't seem all that far-fetched anymore and now I want to help you and your Servant win it!"

Though Muzet was still floating, she positioned her body like she was sitting down in a chair, hands over her knees. "Just remember that you and Lancer aren't in this fight alone; the rest of us are right beside you all the way. Keep that in mind as you two keep pushing forward."

Leia looked at Muzet. "I take it that you felt completely alone a year ago?"

Muzet nodded. "I did. And that thought caused me to commit all kinds of unspeakable acts. To me, Gaius' offer for us to join forces was just a way for me to feel like I wasn't entirely alone anymore."

Holly smiled. "Yeah, that's partially the reason for why I feel better when I have Lancer fighting beside me. All of you aiding us helps that feeling to grow."

Muzet giggled. "I'll bet Lancer helps you feel better in _other_ ways."

Holly sighed. "Why did you have to bring up that kinda thing..?"

"Just tell us if you two went to third base!"

"Like hell I will!"

Leia grinned. "C'mon, tell us!"

"Not you too!"

Muzet grinned and narrowed her eyes. "You know we won't drop it until you tell us."

Holly breathed in heavily through her nose. "...Fine! But don't tell anyone else, especially not Alvin! Otherwise, I'll have both of your hides!"

Leia, still grinning, laid on her stomach on the bed. "We promise not to tell anyone! Now lay it on us!"

"Fine. You know the two times I've done mana transfers on Lancer? Well, this is what we do..."

After she told the girls what a mana transfer involves, she got stares from both of them.

Leia was the first to speak once Holly was done. "...So _that's_ what you two do during a mana transfer?!"

Muzet was jaw-dropped. "...Minus the magic circuits being passed to him, you just described direct-tethering!"

Holly fixed the two with a glare. "I mean it: not a word about it to anyone!"

* * *

That night, Holly visited Lancer in the clinic. Derrick had told her a few minutes ago that the surgery was done. He was hooked up to a heart monitor and several IV needles were in him. It was all on the left side. He also had new bandages over his left arm and bandages covered the stitches over where the hole in the left part of his chest is.

"Hey Holly," Lancer greeted with a weak voice.

"How are you feeling?" Holly asked.

"Heh, I'd be doin' better if a device in my lung wasn't needed."

Holly lowered her gaze sadly. "I'm sorry that this happened to you..."

"Why're ya apologizin'? Ya didn't do this to me."

"I know, but it feels like this is partially my fault!"

The demigod suddenly reached over his body with his right hand and grabbed his Master's arm. "Now don'tcha start thinkin this yer fault!" His eyes narrowed. "I need to tell ya somethin' important."

Holly looked up. "Huh?"

"The second time we were fightin' Goldy, I felt another mana presence. It vanished soon after, so I though I'd imagined it. But right 'fore the surgery, I felt it again. There's definitely another Servant out there, watchin' us."

"Another Servant...But you aren't in any shape to fight one," Holly murmured, tears starting to roll down the sides of her face. Lancer caressed her cheek, thumb wiping away the tears spilling from her left eye.

"Don't worry 'bout it; I swear not to die on ya." He pulled her face close to his until their lips were pressed together. "Don't forget I'll be able to overcome this."


	22. Assassin With a Hundred Faces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been studying like crazy for the required AP Calculus final.

A little over a week later, Holly was walking with Lancer down the streets of Leronde. His left arm was all healed and he got through rehab quickly. He was wearing modern clothes so the shirt wouldn't rub up on his stitches. Ludger called. The rest of the group were going through Fractured Dimensions non-stop looking for the mana source. They reported glimpsing a dark figure in almost every one. Recently, though, many of the mana marks the scanner for the Fractured Dimensions pick up on have been vanishing.

The Master and Servant sat down on a bench looking out to the ocean in the seahaven. Lancer wrapped his right arm around Holly's shoulder, pulling her up against his chest.

"Spendin' time like this with ya feels nice," Lancer said. He was still on edge. Over the week, both he and Holly have picked up on traces of an enemy Servant's mana, and sometimes in several places at once. This made them question how many were actually out there.

"Mmm...I can almost forget our fight is just about over," Holly commented.

"Heh, but even when it does, ya have a plan fer keepin' me 'round."

"I do, but I don't know if it'll even work."

The two jumped when something that sounded like a loud bang resounded. The sound came from the streets of Leronde, behind them.

"What in the world was that?!" Lancer demanded.

"Let's see!" Holly exclaimed. The two got up off the bench and went over to the left side of the gate for the seahaven exit Another bang rocked the ground and debris flew through the air, the two ducking down to avoid being hit.

"Whatever's goin' on sounds bad!" Lancer said. Holly glanced at him.

"Instead of just blindly charging in, use a rune to find out what's happening!"

"Yeah, good idea!" Lancer placed his right hand on the ground. "Berkana!" Right next to it, a stone with a symbol that looked like the letter B formed. It was glowing blue and went off through the gate. Another bang rocked the area and Holly cringed.

"Jeez, I _really_ hope this won't turn out to be major!"

"Yeah, I highly doubt this will be minor," Lancer said. He had his eyes closed, concentrating on what Berkana saw. He opened them. "Whatever's there must've noticed Berkana, 'cause my connection with it suddenly vanished. Meanin' it was destroyed."

"It's probably a Servant; I feel mana coming from the residential area," Holly said as she got up.

"Yeah, if it is, we should take care of it 'fore any more civilians get dragged into the mess," Lancer agreed. The two ran through the gate and into the residential area. Several people fleeing the scene ran into the two before going around them and continuing towards the seahaven. The two went to the entrance of the Rolando's Leronde Lodge, where the bangs were coming from. At least they saw the source. Jude and Gaius were smashing humanoid figures into the ground. However, the opponents faded into black mana before the two could see what it was. Muzet was crushing other black figures in orbs of extreme gravity.

A scream sounded from the Mathis Clinic. "I'll check it out! Just worry about those black things around the lodge!" Holly shouted before running for the clinic. Inside, Jude's parents were near the first room. Ellen was holding Derrick, who had one hand over a large, bleeding slice over his abdomen. Walking to them was a black humanoid creature with black robes and purple hair, holding a black dagger. It's back was to the mage, so Holly couldn't see its face.

Ellen saw Holly. "Help us, please!"

The enemy turned around. A white mask, like the top part of a skull, was over its face so only the ears and mouth were visible. It hissed and dashed at Holly at blinding speeds. She only had enough time to reveal her demon hand before a kick sent her crashing into a wall. Ellen and Derrick were too scared to question the left hand. It threw its dagger at her head and she leaned it to her right. She forced mana to her feet and dashed away from the wall. She hit the thing on the left side of its head with the back of her left hand, making it slam into the wall to its right. While it was dazed, Holly reached back and pulled the dagger out of the wall behind her. Without missing a beat, she plunged the edge into the left side of the creature's skull, making blood splatter everywhere. The thing vanished into black mana and Holly took a step back.

"What _was_ that?!" she demanded.

"I-I'm not sure..." Ellen stammered. "A little after you left with Setanta, we heard Sonia yell something. A little bit later, that thing barged into here. Derrick tried to fight it off, but he was cut with that thing's dagger."

Holly was puzzled. She sensed that thing was definitely a Servant, but it seemed way too easy to kill. She was about to ponder this more when the front door suddenly hit the floor, two more of those black things coming in.

* * *

Lancer ran into the Leronde Lodge after seeing several of the black things go in. Jude, Gaius, and Muzet were handling the ones outside.

"Lancer! You're late!" he heard Sonia yell as soon as he went inside. Leia was at the top of the stairs, handling the enemies there with her staff. Behind the front desk, he could see Warrick in the far corner, hands over his head, sitting with his knees to his chest, and trembling. Several craters of smashed wood dotted the floors and walls. Looking to his left, he saw Sonia. She had a wooden staff in her hands and she clearly just finished wasting five of the dark figures. They were all smashed into the floor, covered in blood. They all faded into black mana.

Lancer sweatdropped. "Scary as always, Sonia...Looks like ya don't need my help."

One more that hopped through the window sprang at Sonia. She hit it over the face with her staff and sent it flying back outside. "Don't be stupid! Of course ya should help! Start by helping out my idiot daughter!"

"Give me a break, Mom!" Leia shouted down from the top of the stairs. Another that went for Sonia ended up being sent crashing through the wall. Lancer chuckled and went up the stairs, summoning Gae Bolg. He blocked the dagger of one Servant with the spear's shaft. Leia smacked the back of its head hard, snapping the neck.

"I can sense these are Assassin Servants," Lancer whispered to Leia so the Rolandos wouldn't hear.

"How is that?! I thought we already killed Assassin!" Leia whispered back.

"I'm not sure...What even happened while Holly an' I were away?!"

The two cut down another Assassin. "Mom was going to go to the back of the house to put away dishes when she saw one of the Servants hiding in a corner, so she yelled, probably loud enough to get the entire town's attention. By the way, do you have any idea who this is?"

Lancer slashed the tip of this spear down, cutting the head of another enemy. "I'm not positive, but since this Servant seems to have different bodies fer each of his multiple personalities, it might be 'Hundred-Faced Hassan'."

"So does that mean there's a hundred of these things?! Just great..." One dagger the reporter didn't noticed whizzed at her, digging into her right shoulder. She fell to one knee and Lancer knocked away the Assassins that went for her. He turned around.

"Are you okay?!"

"Don't worry 'bout me; I'll be fine," she assured him, hand around the wound and wincing. Some that Sonia didn't take care of were coming up the stairs. Lancer ran them all through the middle with Gae Bolg.

Pain went through his back as several daggers were plunged into it. The spearman spun around, lopping off the heads of the Assassins behind him. As soon as he did, the daggers vanished. "Is that all of 'em?!" Hassan wasn't coming after them anymore. The ones Sonia was having to clear out weren't coming in anymore.

Sonia set one end of her staff down on the ground. "I guess my power must scared them off!"

Leia sweatdropped. "...It would scare _anyone_ off..."

Lancer scratched the back of his head, Gae Bolg vanishing. "I guess I should check on my Master." He went down the stairs and out the front door. The three outside were looking around in confusion at the enemies suddenly halt at coming at them. He went across the lane and into the Mathis Clinic. Several of the walls and some of the floor were smashed in. Holly was facing the door, panting. Some cuts were on her, but she seemed too high on adrenaline to feel them.

"You done as well?" she asked.

"Yeah. They just stopped attackin' fer some reason."

"Were you able to find out who it was?"

"Assassin. I'm guessin' it was 'Hundred-Faced Hassan'."

Holly's eyes suddenly widened. "It's not over yet."

Lancer bared his fangs. "I feel it too; mana, an' a lot of it."

The two went outside and faced the nearest exit they were at. Holly pointed in the direction of the Voltea Woods. "It's coming from over there. We should let the other four know."

"What happened to wantin' to take care of the Servants on our own?"

"I can also feel a large amount of mana. That isn't something we can take care of on our own."

Lancer scratched the back of his head. "Whatever ya say..."

The two went over to the Leronde Lodge. The other four were already gathered together in the front.

"Voltea Woods, right?" Leia asked.

Holly's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

Muzet answered. "Even I could feel that large mass of mana."

"I take it we're going together?" Jude asked.

Holly nodded. "Let's take care of this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this was a short chapter, but Hassan seems to be mainly for spying, not battle. And the final battle is over the next two chapters. Epilogue for the last one.


	23. The Final Battle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been SO psyched for the Fate/Grand Order anime, Fate/Grand Order: First Order. It's supposed to be released this month.

As they went into the Voltea Woods, the mana felt stronger.

"We're definitely in the right place," Muzet said. An Assassin jumped down at her from the top of a tree and Gaius moved in front of her, cutting it down.

"Seems we have company."

"Yeah, but the scary thing is not knowing where the enemy is hiding," Holly said. "The mana is everywhere!"

A dagger suddenly flew at her from the top of a tree to her right. Lancer summoned Gae Bolg and knocked it to the ground. He then picked up the dagger and hurled it back into the tree. A moment later, a black Assassin fell to the ground, dagger in his neck, before vanishing. "Ya hafta be careful not to at least be caught by surprise. Even if ya don't know where exactly the enemy is, ya should be ready fer an attack comin' from anywhere."

A female Hassan ran out from behind a tree to the group's left at Jude, slashing down with her dagger. Jude blocked it by holding his right arm up and using the bracer on it to block while Leia snapped its neck by swinging her staff.

"Cut it out, Hassan! We know you're there, so just come out!"

A chuckle resounded through the area, seeming to come from all directions. "Very well."

More Hassans then the group dealt with in Leronde came out from behind the trees. Then black-purple lighting struck the ground at the group. The jumped away in time.

"Who's there?!" Lancer demanded. They heard another chuckle before a black tiger-like creature came out from behind a tree. It had four black horns around its head and a grey beard. Red lines were all over it's black fur. Two red eyes were fixed on the six. Six red strip-like things were flat against its back. Its black tail ended in something that looked like a hook made out of rock. "Who're ya?!"

The thing laughed. "I am Dyaus Pita, the Master of the Servants you all faced."

"You're the Master of those eight?!" Holly exclaimed. "No one should have that much mana!" But even as she said it, she could feel that Dyaus Pita had that much and more.

"How'd ya know which dimension we were in?!" Lancer growled.

The numerous Assassins answered. "We were to spy for your location. After we found you two fighting Gilgamesh, we contacted the rest of the Assassins in the other dimensions and told our Master. Admittedly, it took time for everyone to gather."

Dyaus Pita smirked. "And the fact that several of my Servants were defeated in this dimension was a giveaway." He looked at Lancer. "I just need your mana for Heaven's Feel. Hassan! Keep the other five out of this!"

"Like Hassan will be able to keep us busy for long!" To prove this, Holly grabbed one Hassan that was coming at her with her demon hand and chucked him into another, making both hit the trunk of a tree. Lancer materialized his battle armor while everyone else was dealing with the Assassins behind him.

"Tryin' to kill me will result in the loss of yer own life!"

Pita grinned and crouched. Blood flew out as a pair of black wings with red lines and four red-and-black claws on each burst from the red strips on his back. "Try killing me if you can."

Lancer ran forward, stabbing his spear at Pita's head. The tip clanged against one claw as the tiger's left wing went in front of its face. The demigod jumped back just as the other tried to cut his arm off. The tiger spun around, whipping out its tail. Lancer held his spear up vertically to block, but the strength put into the attack made him fly back into the rock wall. When he fell off of it, he suddenly rolled to his right to avoid Pita's punch, the fisted paw instead punching the rock wall, the power of it breaking into the wall and making dust and rocks fly through the air.

"Damn, this is gonna be hard!" He spat as he blocked the wing claws from slicing into him. It was all he could do to prevent himself from being cut. Black-purple lightning went through the massive claws and stunned the spearman. The next thing he knew, the other wing's claws slammed into his left and blood spattered onto the ground from a massive wound on his left hip. He ran at Pita again, using his spear to knock away all the attacks coming at him. He stabbed it, but the tip dug into the arm of Pita's right forepaw as he moved it in front of his face to block. The tail came at Lancer from behind and dug into his back.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Holly shouted. She pushed the Hassan in front of her to the side and her left hand ate a white gem as she ran at Pita. Blinding white light came from the hand and everyone, friends and foes, had to shield their eyes. Even though she herself couldn't see anything, the gem gave her the ability to pinpoint an enemy by sensing their mana. Once she sensed she was right in front of Pita, she slashed horizontally. The claws hit something hard and she lessened the intensity of the light coming from the demon hand in order for her to see what had happened. Pita had shielded his eyes with both sets of claws, making Holly's claws collide with one of them.

"You'll have to try harder than that," Dyaus Pita chuckled. Holly cut the mana going to her left hand from the light-element gem. It was useless if the enemy could counter it. As soon as she did, the tiger cut her over the abdomen with his left wing, making her fly back.

"Holly!" he exclaimed. He ripped himself off the tail and swung Gae Bolg at the enemy. It was blocked by the claws of the massive left wing. The right wing shot down in that instant, cutting Lancer straight down from his left shoulder to his hip.

"Ugh...Splash!" The water spell used by Holly made Pita jump back away from Lancer. Lightning flashed down at the demigod, but he shoved one end of his spear into the ground and used it to throw himself back near Holly. He helped the mage to her feet.

"Ya still okay to fight?" he asked.

"I can still manage- -Lancer! Behind you!"

The man didn't notice Pita coming at him since his back was facing the tiger. It swung one wing horizontally at his back. Holly wasn't thinking, just pushed him down to the ground on her left side. The next thing she knew, one of the giant claws went through her left side and her back hit the stone wall behind her as she was sent flying through the air. She slumped down to the ground in a sitting position, her blood smearing, and everything went black.

Lancer and everyone else's eyes widened. There were only a few dozen Assassins remaining. They all looked over and chuckled.

"What a wasted effort. Even if she sacrifices herself for her Servant, he's done for if she ends up dying as a result."

Leia sprang at one of them, swinging her staff. "Shut up and die yourselves!"

The one she was aiming for blocked her staff with his dagger. "In the end, it won't matter which of them dies first. Master will kill both either way. And once Lancer dies, Master will summon the Holy Grail."

A couple daggers flew at Gaius and he blocked them with his katana. "If I were you, I wouldn't underestimate either of them."

When Pita was in front of Holly, he swung one wing down, claw aimed at her head. Lancer moved at blinding speeds and grabbed his Master, taking her to safety. The claw smashed into the rock wall, causing bits of rock to fall and hit the ground.

Lancer gently set her down near a boulder on the other side. Her blood was drenching his hands and covering the grass around her. A bestial aura seemed to envelope him and he was gripping his spear so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"Bastard..." he growled. He slowly stood up and vanished, earth shattering where he just was. Pita suddenly had to have both wings over his face as the spearman appeared in front of him, swinging his spear and the shaft hitting the first claws of each wing hard. So much power was put into the swing that the tiger slid back a couple meters.

"Master!" one Assassin shouted before his head was cut off by Gaius. Muzet flew up and threw down a giant gravity ball, crushing a few others.

"Just die!" Pita shouted. The ground around him shattered as the dark lighting hit the ground all around him. Lancer was sent flying back, but recovered fast enough to roll to the side, avoiding the wing claws as the tiger slammed them down where his head was. He charged at Pita from the left side of the enemy, thrusting his spear forward. It was blocked by a wing claw, but the force of the thrust made a small crack in it. Pita whipped his tail out to the side, starting near the claw, and it slammed into the Servant's gut, making him hit the ground hard.

Pita glanced at Lancer on all fours, coughing hard. He swung his head over to look behind him and lumbered over to Holly's defenseless body.

Lancer bared his fangs and tried to get to his feet fast enough. "Don't ya dare touch her!"

Pita grinned and raised one wing, ready to bring the claws down and kill the Master. Blasts of four different elements slammed into his head and made him skid to the side. He turned to his right to see what had hit him.

The spyrite of Maxwell was right in front of Jude. Then Leia was right in front of his face and used Soaring Blast. Pita recoiled a bit, closing his eyes. When he opened them, he was just in time to catch Gaius' Incineration Wave. Right after, Muzet used Binding Sphere. He looked past them to see why Hassan wasn't keeping them busy anymore. Then he saw that all the Hassans were gone.

"Useless..!" he snarled. Jude went over to Holly and tried healing her.

Gaius shifted back into his usual fighting stance. "I hope you don't mind if we join you, Lancer."

"Not at all, an' ya'll took yer time killin' Assassin."

Pita glared at them before firing a giant ball of dark lightning. The four jumped to either side to avoid it. He had to defend himself with both wings when Lancer and Leia came at him, swinging down their weapons. He discharged lightning from his body to knock the two away and jumped back as Muzet launched a ball of gravity at him. As soon as he landed, Gaius was coming at him, about to use Dragon Swarm. Pita roared and tree roots shot up out of the ground, snaking around all those fighting him, but they couldn't reach Muzet in the air. She cast Sunburst to drive the tiger away before slashing the roots apart with her hair.

Pita tried to strike her down with his tail, but Gaius slashed down on it with his katana, pinning it down on the ground. He then tried to slash her with his left wing, but Lancer jumped up, slamming the demonic spear down on the crack in one claw while Muzet flew back out of the enemy's range of attack.

"It's time fer ya to go down!" the demigod shouted.

"I won't let you!" Pita tried to turn away, but Leia got in front of his, smacking his head with her staff.

"I don't think so!"

The crack grew as Lancer tried to cut it. The spear sunk into it. Pita roared and tried to hit him with the other set of claws. A red beam fired from Gaius' katana stopped it.

"Don't even try!"

Jude was at least able to make Holly regain consciousness. "What in the world is Lancer doing?!"

"It looks like he's trying to break that claw."

Lancer grit his teeth as the muscles in his arms worked to cut the claw. Blood flew out as it snapped. It landed in the ground behind Pita and Gaius had to help Lancer up as the man fell.

"W-We did it..!" Muzet said. Pita was covered in red, as if red light was shining on him. A large radius of the ground around the tiger shattered as red lightning rained down. The four let out surprised shouts as they were thrown back.

"You maggots...dare to sever one of my claws?!" Pita roared. "I was going to wait until Lancer died before using all of this mana, but it seems you all have forced me into no other option!" The claws of his wings spread out along either side of the tiger. A golden light appeared in between the two front claws, right at the base of the tail. It vanished and a golden chalice was in its place.

"That's the Holy Grail!" Lancer exclaimed.


	24. Heaven's Feel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On Sunday, I was playing my two God Eater games like crazy, on Saturday, we watched that new Star Wars movie and after it, I was tired beyond belief. Yesterday, my dad had my laptop all day so he could replace the screen. He found out he needs a special knife with no way around it. So yeah, I had a busier weekend than usual.

* * *

Holly forgot for a moment to breathe. The Holy Grail now had the mana of eight Servants, an almost infinite amount. That alone would be trouble if she and Lancer had to fight it. Dyaus Pita already had an insane amount of mana. His mana combined with the Grail's could spell disaster.

Pita lifted his head and roared. The Grail vanished into golden light and the light covered Pita as his body took in the mana. His form had to change to handle the amount of mana he absorbed. The Grail itself was gone now. It wouldn't appear again until the next War and thus more mana couldn't be collected, which was why he wanted Lancer's mana to fill the Grail as well before he absorbed it.

His body grew to well over twice its original size. He was on two feet now and the claws on what were once his forepaws grew to three times their length. The claws on each wing grew until they were touching the ground. The fur around his tail burst to reveal numerous spikes. Large grey plating attached to the elbows appeared and looked like shields.

Holly felt like she was about to have a heart attack when she felt the amount of mana coming from that monster. If they weren't careful in this fight, they were _so_ totally screwed!

Lancer went as white as a ghost. "Damn...He'll _destroy_ us!"

Muzet's eyes were as wide as saucers. "...Does anyone else feel the sudden urge to run like hell?"

Leia shivered. "I'm not a Master or a spirit, and even I can feel his mana!"

Gaius grit his teeth. "We won't know if this fight is hopeless before we've even fought Pita's new form!" He jumped at the tiger, swinging down his katana. However, it was blocked by the right shield. Pita grinned and punched the king in the gut with the other hand. He flew back at speeds like a bullet and created a massive crater when he hit the ground.

Pita took one massive step forward and Holly's Fireball hit the side of his head. It didn't even faze him, just got his attention. Pita smirked and several sharp, vine-like roots sprang up near him. One shot out and Holly reacted in time to push Jude to the side so the teen wouldn't be skewered. The root hit the rock wall and was stuck in it for a moment. Holly cast Fireball again on it, trying to burn it up. But smoke just billowed off it as the flames went out, leaving only a little singe mark.

"These things must have large amounts of mana running through them, cancelling out most of mine!" the mage exclaimed. The root pulled itself out of the rock wall and shot out at the woman's head.

Moving at high speeds, Lancer appeared in front of her, covering her with his body as they both went down to the ground. The root shot right over the back of Lancer's head, coming so close it sliced his golden clasp apart, allowing his long blue hair to spill over his back. It vanished into blue mana before it even hit the ground.

"Good thin' we avoided that! These are much sharper than they look!"

The root struck at them again, but Jude had jumped up over it and punched it down hard, leaving a crater of smashed earth. As soon as he lifted his fist a little, the root retracted to join the others.

Muzet flew up and threw an enormous ball of gravity at Pita. When it exploded, it didn't leave a single scratch on his body. A root shot up and impaled the spirit through the abdomen. It ripped itself out, large amounts of blood hitting the ground. Gaius caught the Great Spirit when she was just about to hit the ground. He then held up one shield to block Leia's staff. He smirked and faced her. A giant ball of red-and-black lightning slammed into her, making her fall back and hit the ground hard.

He turned his head as Lancer jumped up, swinging his lance at the monster. Pita blocked it with his right shield and reached around with his left hand, grabbing a fistful of blue hair. Lancer grit his teeth as he struggled out of the grip, but that was when one wing claw was pressed to his neck.

Pita grinned. "It's the end for you, Servant."

"I don't think so! Ivy Rush!" Roots that Holly had taken control of shot up and smashed into the tiger's arm. It surprised him and made him drop the demigod. He roared and lightning rained down, striking the Master and making her fly back into the cliff wall. Lancer appeared in front of her and held his spear up to block the tail from hitting the mage. He snarled as the weight forced his feet further into the ground.

The monster chuckled and he held out one hand. A blade appeared in it. Everyone else's eyes widened when they recognized that it was Ea.

"How does he have that?!" Jude demanded. "I thought it was Gilgamesh's!"

Holly grit her teeth. "When he absorbed that mana, he must've gained access to the Servants' weapons!"

The sections spun and Pita thrust it out at Holly and Lancer. "Enuma Elish!" An energy beam shot out and the two jumped to the sides in time. The beam smashed into the rock wall, throwing out bits of rock as it ground into it. Several Gates of Babylon appeared around the two. "Enkidu!"

As Holly didn't have high divinity, the chains around her were pretty slack and she was able to get out of them easily. But unfortunately, Lancer is a half-god. The chains held him tightly as they wound around his body. Holly released her demon hand and tried breaking them. But they were much stronger than last time. They barely bent under the full force of her slam. Many Gates appeared behind her.

"Holly! Watch out!" Lancer shouted. Many weapons shot out of them, impaling the mage through the back and some of Lancer as the ones that missed her hit him as well. Blood splashed on the man's body and Holly fell forward, hitting his chest. The weapons vanished, allowing blood to flow freely from the numerous wounds in her back. She fell down and Jude pulled her away to safety so he could heal her. He already used most of his mana the first time, so he ate a Pineapple Gel so he could replenish most of it.

Ea vanished from Pita's right hand and Excalibur took its place. He faced Lancer and held it up. "Ex..." he said when it had charged enough. "...Calibur!"

"Demon Fang!"

"Demon Fist!"

The two men sent out their artes, both attacks hitting Dyaus Pita's left foot and making him lean to the right. The blast of golden energy went off-target slightly, breaking the chains on the left side of Lancer's body and weakening the ones around his neck. He was able to get Gae Bolg in his left hand and cut those ones. He tried cutting the ones on the right side of his body, but Pita already had his right wing raised over the man.

"I won't let you!" Holly exclaimed as she jumped up, grabbing one claw of the wing, and using all of her strength to pull it towards her as it shot down, aiming to kill the spearman. It cut the rest of the chains and cut the man's right hand a little. One root shot up at the mage going through her left shoulder. She grit her teeth in pain. Lancer shot forward and swung his spear sideways at the base of the root. It cut the thing slightly, but got its attention. It pulled out of Holly and Pita discharged electricity from his body to throw the woman off of his wing. The root that had pierced her dove down at Lancer. He knocked it away, but didn't see the others until the last second. It was too late to knock them away entirely, but soon enough that he could make them be non-fatal strikes. They ended up going through both of his shoulders, to the right of his heart, going past his left ear and cutting his head a little, and through his right thigh.

Lancer grinned, allowing more blood to flow over his chin. "Heh, bad news fer the roots." He lifted Gae Bolg and brought it down on the root going through his chest with all of his strength. The root bent down before snapping. Pita's eyes widened and he pulled out the other three before Lancer could cut them. The fourth was already by his side. Lancer yanked out what was left of the fifth root out of his chest, crimson droplets dripping from the root's tip and hitting the ground.

Holly ran at the root Lancer had heft a small cut in and slashed at it with her left hand and using all of her strength. The root snapped and the tip hit the ground, the rest waving harmlessly. However, the other three turned around and speared her through three non-vital areas on her chest. That was all the pain she could take and she passed out, the roots pulling out of her. Lancer dashed forward and caught her before she hit the ground. He was about to take her to Jude, but that was what the tiger expected. He went over to the teen and brought one wing down on him. Jude tried to block with his bracers, but the claws slipped off and behind him, slicing his back deeply. He let out a cry of pain and fell forward, teeth gritted against the agony there.

"Jude!" Leia shouted before going at Pita, swinging down her staff. One root blocked it while the other two ran her through her right shoulder and her abdomen. She went down on one knee as they pulled out.

"Incineration Wave!" Gaius got Pita's attention while Muzet got Holly and the two teens to safety so she could use gels to at least heal Jude enough to where he could heal the other two. Gaius went to Lancer's side. "Looks like it's just you and me."

Lancer glanced at the claw that he had cut during Pita's normal form. "I have an idea. Back me up." He ran at the claw behind Pita. The monster roared and the three roots shot at him. Gaius used his katana to knock each of them away.

"Don't forget about me!"

Pita stabbed Excalibur down at the king and the man jumped back, dirt flying through the air as the sword hit the ground. The tail shot out at him, but Gaius hit it with his katana to knock it off-course. A ball of electricity slammed into him in the next instant, knocking him away.

Pita went over to him and raised one fist. Gaius chuckled and Pita stared at him, confused. "Aren't you forgetting someone?"

Red eyes went wide and the monster turned himself around. Lancer was facing him, spear in both hands. But something was different about it. He had stabbed the tip through the opening in the back of the cut claw and now it was over it. He took off, running at Pita while swinging his spear sideways. He put out both sets of wing claws over his face to block, but the severed claw cut through them like butter. Blood sprayed everywhere as the severed claws hit the ground.

Pita now looked completely scared Lancer thrust his spear at the enemy and Pita held his left shield in Lancer's path. However, the claw broke though it easily and gouged the tiger's arm. Just as Lancer ripped it out, he was stabbed by the three remaining roots. But he smirked and cut them all easily.

"Impossible! You can't be breaking through all of my defenses!" Pita exclaimed as Lancer pulled the roots out. He was bleeding heavily, but was able to overwhelm even Dyaus Pita.

He jumped up, stabbing the spear with the claw down, aimed for the top of Pita's head. He panicked and held Excalibur up to block. It was harder, but the claw shattered the blade.

Pita let out a roar that sounded like a wail as the claw entered his head and stabbed his brain. The massive body hit the ground, limp, and shook the earth. Jude had healed Holly enough for her to wake up. She ate a Lemon Gel to dull the pain entirely so she could run over to Lancer, hugging him tightly.

"You did it!" she cheered. Despite Dyaus Pita not being a Servant, his body faded into golden mana, along with the claw over Gae Bolg. Holly sealed her lips over Lancer's, ignoring the taste of the blood on them. There was more pressure and Holly thought he was trying to deepen the kiss. Then his lips left her's as he fell onto her, breathing heavily.

Jude and the girls gathered around with Gaius. "Is he hurt somewhere else?!"

Holly's eyes widened as she stared at Lancer. Flecks of blue mana drifted off of his body. "This isn't because of his injuries! Now that Dyaus Pita is dead and the Holy Grail's mana is gone, he'll vanish!"

"What?! Isn't there a way to stop this besides Heaven's Feel?!" Muzet demanded.

Gaius looked away, looking grief-stricken. "Unfortunately, we haven't come up with a way. And now it's too late."

Holly shook her head and laid Lancer down on the ground on his back. "Not true. I have a plan. Though I don't know if it will work."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one chapter left. Like Fate/Zero, the final one will have the title of the series. So it will be called Fate/Xillia.


	25. Fate/Xillia

"You have a plan?" Leia asked. "What are you going to do?"

Holly put both hands on Lancer's vanishing body. "I can't tell you right now because all of you won't like it."

Gaius crossed his arms. "If that's so, then we can't let you go through with this."

The three Command Seals on Holly's right hand vanished and Lancer solidified again.

"What was that?" Muzet asked.

"I used the mana in these Seals to keep him from vanishing while I do this," Holly answered. Green light shone from the palms of her hands.

"You can't mean to give up your own life to keep him in this world?!" Muzet demanded.

"Yes and no," the mage replied. "Just watch."

Holly started panting before blue light enveloped her and the harsh breathing subsided. After about a minute, Lancer opened his eyes and sat up. "I'm still here..! What did ya do?!"

"I gave you all of my life force," Holly told him. Muzet put a hand to her chin.

"How are you not dead then?"

"I converted the mana in all of my remaining magic circuits into life energy and used it to save mine."

"Wait, but doesn't that mean..?!" Jude exclaimed.

"Right. I can't use spirit artes anymore. I still have my remaining mana, that Lancer will keep having to feed off of to stay materialized. He'll be more mortal than before, since he'll age. The latest he'll die is a couple hours after I do, when he runs out of my mana."

"I guess you'll have to use spyrix for artes now," Leia said.

Holly looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"We came up with a plan for you to use them in case you ever ran out of magic circuits," Muzet replied. "For now, we'll return to Trigleph and tell the others the War is over."

They went back to Leronde and Sonia had another freak out when she saw how bloody everyone was. Gaius helped Lancer weld the metal of the hair clasp back together and the Servant tied his hair up. They also saw Jude's parents and they acted much like Sonia did, but mostly fretted over Jude. Eventually, they had to struggle to get on the boat to Marksburg, a challenge with both sets of parents all over them.

* * *

Holly called the others and told them the Holy Grail was destroyed, as well as what she did to keep Lancer around. Later in the day, the others got back to Trigleph. Since all the danger was gone, Lancer was sticking to his modern clothes.

The next day, the others, except Holly and Lancer, went to a place called Canaan. The two waited in Holly's room for the group's return. They were gone most of the day and came back without Ludger and a little girl instead. She had the same eyes as Ludger, light brown hair held up in two pigtails by yellow-green ribbons, and a black hat. She wore a blue dress with a pink jacket over it and a yellow one-eyed monster backpack.

"Holly and Lancer, this is Elle," Jude said. "Elle, Holly and Lancer."

Holly bent down so she was the same height as Elle. "Why, hello there. I'm Holly. Go ahead and make yourself at home."

As Elle and the others sat down on the couch and the edge of the bed, Holly stood up again. Lancer put his hands on his hips. "Wow, didn't know ya had a soft spot fer kids."

"Yeah, whatever." Jude was going by her to sit down next to Milla. "Hey, Jude. Where's Ludger?"

"Well..." Jude told both of them about what happened in Canaan and Ludger's sacrifice.

"Good lord..." Was all Holly said.

"Putting that aside, are you and Lancer getting more serious?" Alvin asked.

Holly huffed. "As if!"

Lancer chuckled and slapped Holly on her ass.

Elle cocked her head. "Is he a sexual harasser?"

Holly stared at her. "Where in the world did you learn that?! Do you even know what that means?!"

"Isn't it something a man does to get a woman's attention?"

 _'I guess that's true in a way.'_ "Not exactly, but you shouldn't say that for now."

Elle put a hand to her chin. "Isn't it also something a man does to a woman to let her know he likes her?"

"Same thing: don't go around saying that until you know exactly what it means. Also, Lancer doesn't need to make a move on me. We're already dating."

"Really? He looks like some kind of womanizing pervert."

 _'Okay, seriously. Where in the world is she learning these things?!'_ "It's um...complicated. In a nutshell, we were partners."

Alvin laughed. "Yeah, you guys were partners from the start!"

It was easy to pick up on his sarcasm. Holly grit her teeth and clenched her fists. "Shut it, Alvin!"

* * *

Over the next week, Alvin was helping Holly get used to using spyrix to cast spells. Lancer had to go back to Leronde to get the spyrix out of his healed lung. Holly and Lancer would spar together in the Underground Training Room in Spirius. Elle had inherited Ludger's apartment, but she and Rollo were living in Jude's until she was old enough to get a job and pay bills.

So far, Holly had only relearned low-level spells like Fireball and Wind Blade. She could no longer elementally augment her demon hand, but through her sparring sessions with Lancer, it was strengthened to the point she wouldn't need to augment it.

Holly and Lancer grew closer. He also was bounty hunting with her and used the money he earned to take her out to dinner. In public, she would call him Lancer. But when it was just the two of them, she would use his true name.

She and Lancer were still living in Trigleph and would often join the others when they would be hunting Elite Monsters. They would enter the Colosseum in Xian Du, Holly having to remind Lancer several times not to go overboard and destroy the entire building.

* * *

A couple years later, Lancer proposed to Holly. Though he almost got punched by her.

Lancer made an excuse to go walking by Spirius with Holly. Since they saw it in a Fractured Dimension, she would figure out what it was if they went to Fenmont.

Out of the blue, two police officers grabbed Lancer from behind and forced him down onto his knees. Holly covered her mouth with both hands.

"What are you doing?!"

One officer looked up at her. "Ma'am, please stay back. This man is accused of murder and we need to take him to HQ for questioning."

"Murder?! He wouldn't do that! You must have the wrong person!"

The other one glanced at her. "Maybe you might change your mind after you hear what he has to say."

Holly stared at Lancer. "Lancer, it isn't true right? Tell them they have the wrong person!"

Lancer grinned. "No, of course I didn't kill anyone. But there is somethin' I wanna ask ya." The two officers backed away from him and he pulled out a ring. "Holly Fayte, will ya marry me?"

Holly just stared at him, shocked. "...What?! What about the murder?!"

The first officer broke out laughing. Apparently, they were also in on this sick prank. "There was no murder in the first place!"

"Will ya marry me?" Lancer asked again.

"Of course I will, but you didn't need to pull this dickish move, you jackass!"

"She said 'yes'!" Lancer cheered, getting up and wrapping his arms around the woman. But she was still pissed.

"I hope you already have your will written out, you bastard, because you're so dead when we get back!"

She walked around him and pulled on his ponytail as she went back to the apartment buildings, Lancer protesting all the way. They got to the second floor of their apartment and the rest of the group was gathered in front of the door to the room.

Everyone, except Elle and Elize, were dressed the same. Elize's skirt was almost to her ankles and she wore a white jacket over a yellow shirt, the uniform for the high school she was going to. Elle had her hat gone and her hair down. She wore a light blue shirt with brown shorts.

"Walking the dog?" Alvin laughed.

"Don't call me a dog!" Lancer protested.

Holly ignored him. "What are you all doing here?"

"We heard from Lancer this morning that he was planning to propose to you," Milla said.

Holly facepalmed. "I feel so much worse that I was the only one who didn't know..."

"What was her answer?" Gaius asked Lancer. Holly finally let him go so he could reply pain-free.

"She said yes!"

Alvin clapped. "Hurry up and open the door so we can celebrate, Holly!"

"How about I let in everyone _but_ you?!" the woman snarled.

As she was putting in the code in the number pad, Alvin leaned his mouth near Lancer's ear. "I honestly pity ya, buddy. You're marrying a feisty cat."

The door opened and everyone went in. Alvin placed the bottle of champagne he had been holding on Holly's desk table. She turned around and looked at it. "...You brought that even not knowing my answer? What if I had said no?"

"Eh, I figured you would've said yes. Even a blind person could see how close you two were. We've actually been expecting a proposal for a while now."

Holly went red. The two had been making it too obvious for awhile. "Just keep your nose out of our private affair!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like with the final episode of Ufotable's Fate/stay night, the farthest this one shows is about two years later.


End file.
